Tertiary Care Hospital In Germany Research Articles

Evaluating Mechanisms of Postoperative Delirium and Cognitive Dysfunction Following Elective Spine Surgery in Elderly Patients (CONFESS): Protocol for a Prospective Observational Trial.

BackgroundElderly people are at particular high risk for postoperative delirium (POD) following spine surgery, which is associated with longer hospital stays, higher costs, risk for delayed complications, long-term care dependency, and cognitive dysfunction (POCD). It is insufficiently understood which mechanisms and risk factors contribute to the development of POD and POCD following these major but plannable surgeries.ObjectiveThis study aims to identify modifiable risk factors in spine surgery. A better understanding thereof would help adapt medical management and surgical strategies to individual risk profiles.MethodsThis is a single-center observational study jointly conducted by the departments of neurosurgery, neurology, and anesthesiology at a tertiary care hospital in Germany. All patients aged 60 years and older presenting to the neurosurgery outpatient clinic or ward for elective spine surgery are screened for eligibility. Exclusion criteria include presence of neurodegenerative or history of psychiatric disease and medication with significant central nervous system activity (eg, antidepressants, antipsychotics, sedatives). Surgical and anesthetic procedures including duration of surgery as primary end point of this study are thoroughly documented. All patients are furthermore evaluated for their preoperative cognitive abilities by a number of tests, including the Consortium to Establish a Registry for Alzheimer's Disease Plus test battery. Physical, mental, and social health and well-being are assessed using the Patient-Reported Outcome Measurement Information System Profile 29 and Hospital Anxiety and Depression Scale. Patients additionally receive preoperative cerebrovascular ultrasound and structural and functional brain imaging. The immediate postoperative period includes screening for POD using the Nursing Delirium Screening Scale and validation through Diagnostic and Statistical Manual of Mental Disorders, 5th Edition, criteria. We furthermore investigate markers of (neuro)inflammation (eg, interleukins, C-reactive protein, tumor necrosis factor alpha). Preoperative examinations are repeated 3 months postoperatively to investigate the presence of POCD and its mechanisms. Statistical analyses will compare delirious and nondelirious patients for predictors of immediate (POD) and delayed (POCD) cognitive dysfunction.ResultsThis is the first study to prospectively evaluate risk factors for POD and POCD in spine surgery. Recruitment is ongoing, and data collection is estimated to be finished with the inclusion of 200 patients by mid-2020.ConclusionsThe identification of mechanisms, possibly common, underlying POD and POCD would be a major step toward defining effective interventional strategies early in or even before the postoperative period, including the adaptation of surgical strategies to individual risk profiles.Trial RegistrationClinicalTrials.gov NCT03486288; https://clinicaltrials.gov/ct2/show/NCT03486288

PCR based detection of tcdCΔ117 in Clostridium difficile infection identifies patients at risk for recurrence – A hospital-based prospective observational study

ObjectivesIncreasing incidence and severity of Clostridium difficile infection (CDI) in the last decades has been attributed to the emergence of hypervirulent C. difficile strain PCR-ribotype 027 (RT027). Commercial multiplex real-time PCR tests allow the presumptive identification of RT027 by detecting a single-base deletion at nt117 in the tcdC gene (tcdCΔ117). The clinical usefulness of the detection of tcdCΔ117 is unclear.Therefore, we evaluated test performance and clinical association of the detection of tcdCΔ117 in patients with CDI in a prospective observational study conducted in a tertiary care hospital in Germany. MethodsFrom June to October 2015, stool from all patients with suspected CDI was tested for C. difficile according to ESCMID guidelines. C. difficile was cultured from positive samples and ribotyping was performed. Clinical data were collected prospectively from all C. difficile positive patients. ResultsFrom 1121 tested stool samples 107 patients with CDI were included in the study. TcdCΔ117 was detected in 18 (16.8%) of these patients. Multivariable logistic regression analysis revealed an independent association of detection of tcdCΔ117 with a further episode of CDI (OR 14.6; 95% CI 3.6–58.3; p < 0.001) and death within 30 days of the positive test (OR 5.1; 95% CI 1.0–25.7; p = 0.046). As follow up data are limited, it remains unclear, whether the further episode of CDI was due to tcdCΔ117 (recurrence) or another type. ConclusionIn our setting, PCR-based detection of tcdCΔ117 identified patients at risk for recurrent CDI and increased mortality and thus may guide therapeutic choices in CDI patients at the time of diagnosis.

Changes in Clostridium (Clostridioides) difficile PCR-Ribotype Distribution and Antimicrobial Resistance in a German Tertiary Care Hospital Over the Last 10Years.

Clostridium (Clostridioides) difficile ribotype 027 (RT027) was detected in Germany for the first time in 2007 during an outbreak in the region of Trier, Rhineland-Palatinate and is today the most prevalent ribotype (RT) in Europe. We aimed to determine the changes in RT distribution and corresponding antimicrobial resistance in clinical C. difficile isolates between two time points (2007 and 2017) in one tertiary care hospital in Germany. C. difficile isolates recovered in 2007 and in 2017 (80 isolates per year, respectively) from patients at a Tertiary Care University Hospital in North-Rhine Westphalia were analyzed. Isolates were characterized by ribotyping and susceptibility testing using gradient tests (metronidazole, vancomycin) and the disk diffusion method (moxifloxacin). Between 2007 and 2017, a clear switch from RT001 [18.75% (n = 15) in 2007 versus 3.75% (n = 3) in 2017 P = 0.003] to RT027 [0% in 2007 versus 21.25% (n = 17) in 2017] was evident. While minimal inhibitory concentrations (MICs) of vancomycin were stable, a significant metronidazole MIC creep was determined (MIC50 = 0.047 in 2007 versus MIC50 = 0.094 in 2017, P < 0.0001 using the Man-Whitney test). We detected one metronidazole-resistant isolate (0.6%). Interestingly, in total we encountered more isolates resistant to moxifloxacin in 2007 (42 (52.25%) than in 2017 [(30 (37.5%), P = 0.06)]). We could demonstrate that RT027 replaced RT001 in the last 10years in our hospital. Furthermore, our data show a metronidazole MIC creep in C. difficile isolates over the last 10years and an unexpected decrease of isolates resistant to moxifloxacin.

Point prevalence survey of peripheral venous catheter usage in a large tertiary care university hospital in Germany

BackgroundBloodstream infections (BSI) are among the most frequently documented healthcare-associated infections (HAI). Central and peripheral venous catheters (CVC and PVC) are relevant risk factors for BSI. Although the risk for BSI is higher for CVC, PVC are utilized more frequently and are therefore relevant in the context of HAI prevention. Robust data on the prevalence of PVC and associated infections in German hospitals are scarce to this date. The objectives of this survey were to estimate the prevalence of PVC and PVC-associated infections on peripheral wards of a large tertiary care hospital in Germany. The collected data may be utilized for a tailored infection prevention intervention in the future.MethodsA point prevalence survey was conducted on peripheral wards of a tertiary care hospital with more than 3.000 beds. Data were collected between August 2017 and February 2018. Standardized data collection forms were used for collecting ward, patient and PVC-related data. As endpoints, prevalence of patients with PVC, PVC-associated infections and PVC without usage in the 24 h prior to the survey and without documentation of intended usage in the 24 h after the survey (“unused PVC”) were chosen. For data analysis, Kruskal-Wallis test was employed for continuous variables and Chi-squared test or Fisher’s exact test for categorical variables. Multivariable analysis and logistic regression were performed for the endpoint unused PVC.ResultsData from 2.092 patients on 110 wards were collected. The overall prevalence of patients with PVC was 33%. Infections were recorded in 16 patients. Except one case of BSI, these were all local infections at the site of insertion. Of 725 documented PVC, 77 (11%) were unused PVC. Multivariate analysis and logistic regression revealed wards with the practice of regularly obtaining blood from PVC, PVC with dirty or loose insertion dressing, pediatric ward specialty and last inspection of the PVC more than 1 day ago as significant risk factors for unused PVC.ConclusionsA substantial proportion of patients presented with a PVC on the day of survey. Too few infections were recorded to allow for more detailed analyses. Various risk factors for unused PVC were identified. We hereby present a solid method to obtain an overview about PVC use and to increase awareness for PVC-associated risks. The limitations of point prevalence surveys have to be recognized.

Health utilities for chronic low back pain

BackgroundChronic low back pain (LBP) is a common health problem, with a large potential for primary prevention. Health utilities (HU) reflect which proportion of their expected remaining life time individuals would hypothetically trade to be alleviated of a health condition of interest. A value of 0 means “prefer to die immediately”, a value of 1 means “not willing to trade any life time”. The aim of this cross-sectional study was to assess HU for LBP patients and for healthy participants and to examine whether HU for LBP are useful indicators to substantiate preventive and therapeutic decision making.MethodsHealthy participants (n = 126) and LBP patients (n = 32) were recruited mainly among the employees of a tertiary care hospital in Germany. Standardized LBP scenarios were presented to all participants and HU values were assessed using the time-trade-off method.ResultsMedian HU for LBP were 0.90 (IQR 0.31) for participants and 0.93 (IQR 0.10) for LBP patients. Measurements were consistent across illness severity ratings with HU and with a visual analogue scale (VAS); in the healthy sample the intraclass correlation coefficient (ICC) was 0.61 (95% CI 0.23–1.00, F(1125) = 190, p < .001), in the patient sample the ICC was 0.66 (95% CI = 0.24–1.00, F(1,31) = 62, p < .001). 8% of participants reported HU of 1. There was no statistically significant relation between HU and age, income, or gender.ConclusionOn average, participants chose a 7 to 10% shorter life expectancy to avoid LBP, but almost 1 in 10 participants were not willing to trade any life years. The results indicate a certain stability of HU due to the comparability of HU ratings across patients and healthy participants, the measurement consistency when comparing VAS and HU ratings, and the lack of association between demographic variables and HU. This underlines the usefulness of HU for measuring illness severity in comparative health economics evaluations of preventive and therapeutic measures that address chronic LBP or other pain-characterized diseases. Future studies should focus on different LBP intensities and derive stratified HU that reflect the distribution of pain intensity in the population.

Temporal artery biopsy in the diagnosis of giant cell arteritis: Bigger is not always better

ObjectiveAccurate early giant cell arteritis (GCA) diagnosis can be established through temporal artery biopsy (TAB). We herein investigate the relationship between specimen length and positive TAB result in a tertiary-care hospital in Germany during a 8-year period. Secondarily, we studied the relationships of specific epidemiological and laboratory parameters with positive TABs. MethodWe retrospectively reviewed the medical records of all patients with suspected GCA, who underwent TAB in our institution. ResultsThe total sample consisted of 116 patients with a mean age of 76.1 (SD 7.7) years. Mean specimen length post-fixation was 0.94 cm (SD 0.49). The TAB(+) group consisted of 64 patients (55.2%). The specimen length was comparable in the two groups (0.96 cm vs 0.91 cm, p = 0.581). Twenty six TAB(+) patients (41%) had a post-fixation specimen longer than 1 cm, comparable with the respective percentage in the TAB(−) group (42%, p = 1). All laboratory tests performed were statistically significantly different in the two groups. ConclusionWe conclude that TAB length is not associated with the TAB diagnostic yield in patients with clinical suspicion of GCA.

Clinical significance of coagulase-negative staphylococci other than S. epidermidis blood stream isolates at a tertiary care hospital.

We retrospectively evaluated blood culture (BC) isolates of coagulase-negative staphylococci other than Staphylococcus epidermidis (NonSe-CoNS) for clinical relevance at a tertiary care hospital in Germany from January 2011 to September 2015. Clinical data were correlated to microbiological results based on medical records. Infection was considered likely if (1) no other infection and (2) two or more isolates of the same species were present and (3) symptoms ameliorated after therapy. Infection was considered possible if a foreign body was present and (1) and (3) were fulfilled. All the other cases were considered contaminations. 313 patients with blood cultures positive for NonSe-CoNS were identified. 61 patients were excluded, either because of missing data or multiple pathogens in the same blood culture. Of the remaining 252 patients, 58 (23%) were classified as possible (n=32) or likely (n=26) infections. S. haemolyticus was the most frequent isolate (infection: n=28), followed by S. hominis (n=13), S. capitis (n=12), and S. lugdunensis (n=3). One patient died from NonSe-CoNS infection. The source of infection in the majority of patients was foreign bodies (n=43), and endocarditis was present in six cases. Staphylococci always considered contaminations were: S. auricularis, S. caprae, S. schleiferi, S. pettenkoferi, S. saccharolyticus, and S. simulans. The growth of NonSe-CoNS in the anaerobic BC bottle only and a time to positivity >36h were associated with contaminations. One out of four NonSe-CoNS isolates was clinically relevant in our cohort, where S. haemolyticus, S. capitis, S. hominis, and S. lugdunensis contributed to 96.6% of all relevant infections.

Infectious diseases consultations can make the difference: a brief review and a plea for more infectious diseases specialists in Germany

Trained infectious diseases (ID) specialists are an integral part of inpatient and outpatient care in many countries, however, these specialized services are established only in selected tertiary care hospitals in Germany. This review summarises studies that addressed the impact of ID consultation services on patient care and outcome. Extensive data for a clinical benefit is available in the context of Staphylococcus aureus bacteremia (SAB), in which in-hospital or 30-day mortality was significantly reduced by 40-50 % in patients evaluated and treated in cooperation with ID consultants. This effect was associated with improved adherence to quality-of-care standards. Moreover, newer studies show a reduced length of hospital stay due to ID consultations, especially if patients are evaluated early in the course of their hospital stay. Of note, informal consultations do not seem to be equivalent to a formal ID consultation with bedside patient evaluation. Studies in other patient groups (solid organ transplant recipients or intensive care unit patients) or in the context of other infections (infective endocarditis, pneumonia, other bloodstream infections) also revealed positive effects of ID consultations. Higher rates of appropriate empirical and targeted antimicrobial treatments and de-escalation strategies due to successful pathogen identification were documented. These modifications resulted in lower treatment costs and decreased antimicrobial resistance development. Although there are methodological limitations in single studies, we consider the consistent and reproducible positive effects of ID consultations shown in studies in different countries and health care systems as convincing evidence for improved quality-of-care and treatment outcomes in patients with infectious diseases. Thus, we strongly recommend efforts to establish significantly more ID consultation services in hospitals in Germany.

Computed tomography for the identification of a potential infectious source in critically ill surgical patients

IntroductionComputed tomography (CT) seems already to have an important role to identify an infectious source in the management of patients with sepsis. However, our daily clinical behavior in ordering CT imaging was never scrutinized. MethodsWe conducted a retrospective single-center analysis of CT and its therapeutic consequences in an operative intensive care unit in a tertiary care hospital in Germany. All CTs of the abdomen and/or thorax between 1st January and 31st December 2012 were included. One hundred forty-four CT studies were enrolled: 60.4% visceral, 6.9% vascular, 17.4% thoracic, and 14.6% trauma surgical cases and in 0.7% other disciplines. ResultsIn 76 CT studies (52.8%), a source of infection was found and was associated with a change in treatment in 65 (85.5%) cases. In contrast, in patients without identification of an infectious source in the CT imaging, treatment was changed after CT imaging in 11 (16.2%) cases. Computed tomography provided positive findings predominantly in the organ or the region of the surgical field. ConclusionsComputed tomographic imaging detected an infectious source in more than 50% of cases. Our data suggest that CT should be recommended to identify a source of infection in critically ill patients. Furthermore, prospective studies are needed to investigate the potential impact of CT imaging on outcome and to define criteria when to perform a CT imaging study.

The effectiveness of an intensive care quick reference checklist manual—A randomized simulation-based trial

PurposeWe aimed to test the effectiveness of checklists for emergency procedures on medical staff performance in intensive care crises. Materials and methodsThis is a prospective single-center randomized trial in a high-fidelity simulation center modeling an intensive care unit (ICU) in a tertiary care hospital in Germany. Teams consisted of 1 ICU resident and 2 ICU nurses (in total, n = 48). All completed 4 crisis scenarios, in which they were randomized to use checklists or to perform without any aid. In 2 of the scenarios, checklists could be used immediately (type 1 scenarios); and for the remaining, some further steps, for example, confirming diagnosis, were required first (type 2 scenarios). Outcome measurements were number of predefined items and time to completion of more than 50% and more than 75% of steps, respectively. ResultsWhen using checklists, participants initiated items faster and more completely according to appropriate treatment guidelines (9 vs 7 items with and without checklists, P < .05). Benefit of checklists was better in type 2 scenarios than in type 1 scenarios (2 vs 1 additional item, P < .05). In type 2 scenarios, time to complete 50% and 75% of items was faster with the use of checklists (P < .005). ConclusionsUse of checklists in ICU crises has a benefit on the completion of critical treatment steps. Within the type 2 scenarios, items were fulfilled faster with checklists. The implementation of checklists for intensive care crises is a promising approach that may improve patients' care.

Evaluation of third-generation ELISA and a rapid immunochromatographic assay for the detection of norovirus infection in fecal samples from inpatients of a German tertiary care hospital

The analytical accuracy of the RIDASCREEN Norovirus 3rd Generation ELISA assay and the rapid immunochromatographic RIDAQUICK Norovirus assay were determined in comparison to PCR. In a prospective study 410 consecutive samples were collected from inpatients of a tertiary care hospital in Germany. All samples were tested with the two antigen detection assays, as well as with three different real-time reverse transcription PCR methods as the reference standard. A sample was considered true-positive if at least 2 out of 3 PCR methods yielded a positive signal (137 positive samples, >99% genogroup II). Compared with the PCR-based reference the overall diagnostic sensitivities of the ELISA and the immunochromatographic assay were 77% and 69% and the diagnostic specificities were 96% and 97% respectively. Both assays allow the rapid and economic screening of large numbers of samples and thus are useful diagnostic tools for the detection of suspected norovirus infections.

Secular trends in pediatric bloodstream infections over a 20-year period at a tertiary care hospital in Germany

Over the last 20 years, a number of medical innovations with impact on the incidence of bacterial and fungal bloodstream infections (BSIs) in children have been developed and implemented. Although appropriate empirical antimicrobial therapy is a prerequisite to the successful treatment of BSIs, to date, epidemiological data on long-term microbiological trends in BSIs of hospitalized children have not been available. Two cohorts of pediatric patients who were hospitalized in a single-center tertiary care hospital in Germany over a 20-year time span (period A from 1985 to 1995 vs. period B from 1997 to 2006) were retrospectively analyzed and compared with respect to the epidemiology and microbiology of BSIs. A total of 1,646 cases of monomicrobial BSIs were detected. The rate of positive blood culture results dropped from 4.5% in period A to 2.0% in period B. The proportion of gram-positive vs. gram-negative pathogens recovered from blood cultures remained stable. Among gram-positive pathogens, an increase in enterococci (3.3% vs. 8.2%) and in coagulase-negative staphylococci (CoNS) (22.9 vs. 28.2%) was observed. In contrast, BSIs caused by Staphylococcus aureus (16.4% vs. 11.7%), Streptococcus agalactiae (4.9% vs. 2.1%), Haemophilus influenzae (7.3% vs. 0.7%), and Neisseria meningitidis (1.9% vs. 0.5%) diminished. In analyzing subgroups, an increase of enterococcal and CoNS infections was noted among patients with immunosuppression and neonatal early-onset sepsis (EOS), while a decrease was found among late-onset sepsis (LOS) cases with S. viridans. Notably, aminopenicillin-resistant enterococci and aminopenicillin- and fluoroquinolone-resistant Enterobacteriaceae all increased over time, while the overall resistance pattern was still favorable. The overall mortality rate of BSIs decreased (5.2% vs. 2.6%). Over the 20-year study period, the spectrum of specific microorganisms among BSIs shifted, with opportunistic pathogens becoming predominant. Despite an increase in the proportion of antibiotic-resistant organisms, however, the mortality rate decreased.