Infectious Disease Alert articles from June 2004

Infectious Disease Alert archives from June 2004

Antivirals and the SARS coronavirus.(Abstract & Commentary)(Severe acute respiratory syndrome)
June 1, 2004... Synopsis: Interferon [alpha]-n1 (Wellferon), interferon [alpha]-n3 (Alferon), and interferon [beta]-1b (Betaferon) were each found to have in vitro activity against a strain of the SARS coronavirus. Source: Tan ELC, et al. Inhibition of...

Melioidosis in Australia.(Abstract & Commentary)
June 1, 2004... Synopsis: Melioidosis is endemic in parts of Australia that may be visited by tourists. Some: Melioidosis--Australia (Northern Territory). ProMED-Mail Archives. March 22, 2004. ********** ALLEN CHENG REPORTED THAT, AS OF MARCH 20,...

An aspirin a day keeps the biofilm at bay.(Abstract & Commentary)
June 1, 2004... Synopsis: Aspirin possesses potent activity against the formation of biofilms formed by Candida albicans and could be useful in combination for managing biofilm-associated infections. Source: Alem MAS. Effects of aspirin and other...

Misidentification of Candida species by clinical laboratories--not a good thing.(Abstract & Commentary)
June 1, 2004... Synopsis: Almost 1 in 20 Candida species isolated were misidentified by clinical laboratories; these errors have potential for engendering adverse clinical outcomes. C glabrata was the species most frequently misidentified. Sources:...

Does eradication of staphylococci from the nose reduce nosocomial infection in nonsurgical patients.(Abstract & Commentary)
June 1, 2004... Synopsis: Mupirocin application to the nose of hospitalized Staphylococcus aureus carriers did not decrease the incidence of nosocomial S aureus infection, but it did delay its appearance. Source: Wertheim HFL, et al. Mupirocin prophylaxis...

ICAAC/IDSA/ASTMH 2003.(Conference Coverage)(Interscience Conference on Antimicrobial Agents and Chemotherapy )(Infectious Disease Society of America )(American Society of Tropical Medicine and Hygiene )
June 1, 2004... The following summary of selected abstracts from 3 meetings will be published in multiple parts. The 43rd Interscience Conference on Antimicrobial Agents and Chemotherapy (ICAAC) met in Chicago September 14-17, 2003. The Infectious Disease...

CME questions.(continuing medical education)
June 1, 2004... 17. The prostaglandins of Candida albicans are involved in: a. cell growth. b. hyphal formation. c. cell division. d. adhesion to surfaces. e. antifungal resistance. 18. True or false? Nasal mupirocin has been shown...

Animal reservoirs for SARS.(Updates)(Severe acute respiratory syndrome)(Brief Article)
June 1, 2004... Source: ProMED-mail post. April 17, 2004. LAST YEAR, CHINA DESTROYED thousands of civet cats, either hoping to eradicate a primary reservoir for human infection or to impress an anxious public that their government was doing something....

SARS Screening identifies TB cases instead.(Updates)(severe acute respiratory syndrome)(tuberculosis)(Brief Article)
June 1, 2004... Source: MMWR Morb Mort Wkly Rep. 2004;53(15):321-322. SCREENING FOR SARS IN HOSPITAL workers in Taipei, Taiwan, last spring ultimately led to the diagnosis of 60 cases of documented or suspected nosocomial tuberculosis. Increased vigilance...

Measles outbreak among Chinese adoptees.(Updates)
June 1, 2004... Source: MMWR Morb Mortal Wkly Rep. 2004;53(15):323-324. AN OUTBREAK OF MEASLES HAS been identified among 12 young adoptees from China who traveled to the United States with their new families on March 26. Nine of the children, 4 of whom...

Recovery of vaccinia after smallpox inoculation.(Updates)
June 1, 2004... Source: Clin Infect Dis. 2004;38:536-541. A GOOD QUESTION RAISED DURing President Bush's foiled directive to vaccinate health care workers against smallpox was: How occlusive were those occlusive dressings that individuals wore following...

Risk of hepatitis A in travelers to developing countries.(Updates)(Brief Article)
June 1, 2004... Source: Teitelbaum P. J Travel Med. 2004;11:102-106. ABOUT 4-28% OF CASES OF hepatitis A occur in travelers. This estimated risk has let to recommendations for hepatitis A vaccination (HAV). Teitelbaum assessed the annual incidence of acute...

Missing link between vaccines and diabetes.(Brief Article)
June 1, 2004... A large cohort study from Denmark suggests no link between childhood vaccines and type 1 diabetes. The potential for such a link has been of concern for years because of the association between certain infections and the development of type 1...

Breast cancer and the use of statins.(Brief Article)
June 1, 2004... Adding to the considerable evidence regarding the safety and efficacy of statins, it now appears that statins may slightly reduce the risk of breast cancer. Published in the "Early View" online journal Cancer, this case-control study was...

Warnings issued for IBS drugs.(irritable bowel syndrome)
June 1, 2004... Tegaserod (Zelnorm-Novartis), the heavily promoted serotonin 5-HT4 partial agonist for the treatment of irritable bowel syndrome (IBS), is the subject of new warnings by the FDA. The drug is indicated for women with IBS whose primary symptom is...

FDA actions.
June 1, 2004... The FDA has removed the warning for lactic acidosis from metformin (Glucophage) and metformin extended release (Glucophage XR). Once considered the most serious side effect associated with metformin, a recent meta-analysis showed that there...

Antihypertensive treatment and measurement at home or in the physician's office.(Brief Article)
June 1, 2004... Source: Staeesen JA, et al. JAMA. 2004;291:955-964. A NOT-INSUBSTANTIAL MINORITY OF persons carrying a diagnosis of hypertension (HTN) actually have stress-induced transient episodes of HTN in clinicians' offices, which we call "white coat...

Inactivated intranasal influenza vaccine and the risk of Bell's palsy.(Brief Article)
June 1, 2004... Source: Mutsch M, et al. N Eng J Med. 2004;350:896-903. LATE IN 2000, THE SWISS DRUG Monitoring Center and others noted numerous reports of Bell's palsy in persons who had received NFLU. To better study the relationship between NFLU and...

Topiramate for migraine prevention.(Brief Article)
June 1, 2004... Source: Brandes JL, et al. JAMA. 2004;291(8):965-973. SOME PATIENTS REMAIN DISSATISFIED migraine treatments. Early studies have found that topiramate (TOP), an antiepileptic agent, is efficacious for migraine prevention. Although there are...

Computed tomographic colonography (Virtual colonoscopy).(Brief Article)
June 1, 2004... Source: Cotton PB, et al. JAMA. 2004;291:1713-1719. SCREENING FOR COLON CANCER (CCa) has not reached the same level of popular adherence as seen with, for instance, prostate cancer screening by PSA. Although colonoscopy (COL) is highly...

Ejaculation frequency and subsequent risk of prostate cancer.(Brief Article)
June 1, 2004... Source: Leitzmann MF, et al. JAMA. 2004;291:1578-1586. PROSTATE CANCER (PCA) HYPOTHETIcally could be related to sexual activity. For instance, if men who seek sexual activity more often have higher testosterone levels, and such levels were...

Different combinations of bupropion SR dose and behavioral treatment for smoking cessation.(Brief Article)
June 1, 2004... Source: Javitz HS, et al. Am J Manag Care. 2004;10:217-226. THE SINGLE MOST EFECTIVE PHARMAceutical intervention which results in sustained smoking cessation is bupropion (BUP). The most often-used treatment regimen requires BUP 150 mg/d...