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Start Over Author "Simões, Alexandra" Topic microbiology
3 results on '"Simões, Alexandra"'

1. Prevention and control of antimicrobial resistant healthcare-associated infections: The microbiology laboratory rocks!

Author

Simões, Alexandra S., Couto, Isabel, Toscano, Cristina, Gonçalves, Elsa, Póvoa, Pedro, Viveiros, Miguel, Lapão, Luís V., Global Health and Tropical Medicine (GHTM), Population health, policies and services (PPS), Instituto de Higiene e Medicina Tropical (IHMT), TB, HIV and opportunistic diseases and pathogens (THOP), NOVA Medical School|Faculdade de Ciências Médicas (NMS|FCM), and Centro de Estudos de Doenças Crónicas (CEDOC)

Subjects
Antibiotic stewardship, Microbiology (medical), Health Information Management, SDG 3 - Good Health and Well-being, Antibiotics, Communication, Prevention, Control, Information systems, Healthcare-associated infections, Microbiology
Abstract

In Europe, each year, more than four milion patients acquire a healthcare-associated infection (HAI) and almost 40 thousand die as a direct consequence of it. Regardless of many stategies to prevent and control HAIs, they remain an important cause of morbidity and mortality worldwide with a significant economic impact: a recent estimate places it at the ten billion dollars/year. The control of HAIs requires a prompt and efficient identification of the etiological agent and a rapid communication with the clinician. The Microbiology Laboratory has a significant role in the prevention and control of these infections and is a key element of any Infection Control Program. The work of the Microbiology Laboratory covers microbial isolation and identification, determination of antimicrobial susceptibility patterns, epidemiological surveillance and outbreak detection, education, and report of quality assured results. In this paper we address the role and importance of the Microbiology Laboratory in the prevention and control of HAI and in Antibiotic Stewardship Programs and how it can be leveraged when combined with the use of information systems. Additionally, we critically review some challenges that the Microbiology Laboratory has to deal with, including the selection of analytic methods and the proper use of communication channels with other healthcare services. publishersversion published

Published
2016

2. Disease Isolates of Streptococcus pseudopneumoniae and Non-Typeable S. pneumoniae Presumptively Identified as Atypical S. pneumoniae in Spain.

Author

Rolo, Dora, S. Simões, Alexandra, Domenech, Arnau, Fenoll, Asunción, Liñares, Josefina, de Lencastre, Hermínia, Ardanuy, Carmen, and Sá-Leão, Raquel

Subjects
*BACTERIAL disease treatment, *STREPTOCOCCUS pneumoniae, *POLYMERASE chain reaction, *ANTI-infective agents, *RIBOSOMAL RNA, *GENE targeting, *MEDICAL statistics
Abstract

We aimed to obtain insights on the nature of a collection of isolates presumptively identified as atypical Streptococcus pneumoniae recovered from invasive and non-invasive infections in Spain. One-hundred and thirty-two isolates were characterized by: optochin susceptibility in ambient and CO2-enriched atmosphere; bile solubility; PCR-based assays targeting pneumococcal genes lytA, ply, pspA, cpsA, Spn9802, aliB-like ORF2, and a specific 16S rRNA region; multilocus sequence analysis; and antimicrobial susceptibility. By multilocus sequence analysis, 61 isolates were S. pseudopneumoniae, 34 were pneumococci, 13 were S. mitis, and 24 remained unclassified as non-pneumococci. Among S. pseudopneumoniae isolates, 51 (83.6%) were collected from respiratory tract samples; eight isolates were obtained from sterile sources. High frequency of non-susceptibility to penicillin (60.7%) and erythromycin (42.6%) was found. Only 50.8% of the S. pseudopneumoniae isolates displayed the typical optochin phenotype originally described for this species. None harbored the cpsA gene or the pneumococcal typical lytA restriction fragment length polymorphism. The Spn9802 and the specific 16S rRNA regions were detected among the majority of the S. pseudopneumoniae isolates (n = 59 and n = 49, respectively). The ply and pspA genes were rarely found. A high genetic diversity was found and 59 profiles were identified. Among the S. pneumoniae, 23 were capsulated and 11 were non-typeable. Three non-typeable isolates, associated to international non-capsulated lineages, were recovered from invasive disease sources. In conclusion, half of the atypical pneumococcal clinical isolates were, in fact, S. pseudopneumoniae and one-fourth were other streptococci. We identified S. pseudopneumoniae and non-typeable pneumococci as cause of disease in Spain including invasive disease. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

Published
2013
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3. Identification, prevalence and population structure of non-typable Streptococcus pneumoniae in carriage samples isolated from preschoolers attending day-care centres.

Author

Sá-Leão, Raquel, Simões, Alexandra S., Nunes, Sónia, Sousa, Natacha G., Frazão, Nelson, and de Lencastre, Hermínia

Subjects
*STREPTOCOCCUS pneumoniae, *STREPTOCOCCUS, *PRESCHOOL children, *PATHOGENIC microorganisms, *MICROBIAL virulence, *MICROBIOLOGY
Abstract

The article focuses on the identification, prevalence and population structure of non-typable Streptococcus pneumoniae (NTPn) in carriage samples isolated from preschoolers attending day-care centers. Strains were confirmed to be pneumococci on the basis of bile solubility and PCR detection. NTPn have diverse genetic backgrounds and may have evolved as a distinct group of pneumococcal isolates.

Published
2006
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