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Introduction: Staphylococcus aureus bacteremia (SAB) is the second-most common cause of community-onset (CO) bacteremia. The incidence of methicillin-resistant S. aureus (MRSA) has recently decreased across much of the United States, and we seek to describe risk factors for COMRSA bacteremia, which will aid emergency providers in their choice of empiric antibiotics.Methods: This is a retrospective cohort study of all patients with SAB at a 500-bed safety net hospital. The proportion of S. aureus isolates that were MRSA ranged from 32-35% during the study period. Variables of interest included age, comorbid medical conditions, microbiology results, antibioticadministration, duration of bacteremia, duration of hospital admission, suspected source of SAB, and Elixhauser comorbidity score. The primary outcome was to determine risk factors for CO-MRSA bacteremia as compared to methicillin-susceptible S. aureus (MSSA) bacteremia in patients admittedto the hospital through the emergency department.Results: We identified 135 consecutive patients with CO-SAB. In comparison to those with MSSA bacteremia, patients with MRSA bacteremia were younger (odds ratio [OR] 0.5, 95% confidence interval [CI], 0.4-0.7) with higher Elixhauser comorbidity scores (OR 1.4, 95% CI, 1.1-1.7). Additionally, these patients were more likely to have a history of MRSA infection or colonization (OR 8.9, 95% CI,2.7-29.7) and intravenous drug use (OR 2.4, 95% CI, 1.0-5.7).Conclusion: SAB continues to be prevalent in our urban community with CO-MRSA accounting for almost one-third of SAB cases. Previous MRSA colonization was the strongest risk factor for current MRSA infection in this cohort of patients with CO-SAB.

The article discusses research conducted at Arkansas Children's Hospital, which aimed to examine the impact of severe acute respiratory syndrome coronavirus 2 (SARS-CoV-2) infection mitigation strategies on pediatric cases of Group A streptococcus (GAS) pharyngitis. The study found that implementing infection control measures during the pandemic resulted in a reduction in the incidence of GAS pharyngitis, particularly among younger age groups.

Objective: To characterize pregnant women's food safety practices, to evaluate the impact of existing educational messages on the risks and prevention of listeriosis, and to identify preferred delivery methods for educational initiatives. Design: Eight focus group discussions conducted with pregnant women in 4 locations. Setting: Focus group discussions led by moderators using a prepared moderator guide. Participants: Purposeful sampling was used to select the 63 pregnant women who participated in this study. The focus groups were segmented by location and education level. Phenomenon of Interest: Food safety knowledge and food-handling practices, food safety practices during pregnancy, attitudes toward listeriosis brochure, and preferred delivery methods. Analysis: Focus group discussions were videotaped and audiorecorded. Detailed summaries of each discussion were prepared and systematically analyzed to identify common themes within and across groups. Results: Participants were not aware of the risks of listeriosis and recommended practices for listeriosis prevention; thus, they were not taking precautions during their pregnancy to prevent listeriosis. Conclusions and Implications: The study identified the need to develop educational materials on listeriosis targeted specifically to pregnant women and to partner with obstetricians and other health care providers to deliver these materials to pregnant women. KEY WORDS: foodborne illness, pregnant women, education, listeriosis

Twenty-seven patients receiving prolonged inpatient antibiotic therapy for a serious bacterial infection received a single dose of dalbavancin 7–10 days before the planned end date to facilitate earlier hospital discharge. Eighty-one percent met criteria for clinical success, 7% experienced a potential adverse event, and 182 hospital days were averted. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

Federal food standards of identity protect consumers from nutritional and economic fraud by establishing standardized names and characteristics for some products. Standards have been criticized for a variety of reasons, raising the possibility that standards may be harmful to the consumers' interests that they are designed to protect. The authors conducted focus groups to collect information on consumers' attitudes toward food standards and their perceived usefulness. Many participants believed that standards are useful and deemed standards to be more important for some types of products than others. Regulators can use the study findings to guide policy decisions on food standards. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

Nosocomial respiratory infections cause significant morbidity and mortality, especially among the extremely susceptible neonatal population. Human rhinovirus C is a common viral respiratory illness that causes significant complications in children <2 years old. We describe a nosocomial outbreak of human rhinovirus C in a level II-III neonatal intensive care unit in an urban public safety net hospital., (Copyright © 2015 Association for Professionals in Infection Control and Epidemiology, Inc. Published by Elsevier Inc. All rights reserved.)