ObjectiveTo investigate the distribution and drug resistance of the pathogens isolated from hospitalized pediatric patients with respiratory tract infections, and to provide guidance for empiric therapy.
MethodsRespiratory tract specimens from hospitalized pediatric patients with respiratory tract infections from 2011 to 2015 were collected, and the strains were identified and the drug susceptibility was tested.
ResultsA total of 1995 strains of pathogens, 1281 (64.21%) from boys and 714 (35.79%) from girls, were isolated from 6236 specimens and the detection rate was 31.99%. The mean age of the hospitalized pediatric patients was (1.22±2.05) years (ranged from 1 day to 14 years). 1393 (69.82%) pediatric patients were younger than 1 year. Staphylococcus aureus, Escherichia coli, Klebsiella pneumoniae, Candida albicans and Acinetobacter baumannii ranked the top five species, accounting for 29.82%, 15.09%, 13.18%, 12.73% and 5.91%, respectively. 1995 strains included gram-negative bacteria (50.93%), gram-positive bacteria (35.29%), and fungi (13.78%). The resistance rate of Staphylococcus aureus to oxacillin was 31.76%, but it was 100% sensitive to vancomycin and linezolid. The resistant rate of gram-negative bacteria to imipenem was ranged from 1.52% to 5.93%. The resistant rate of gram-negative bacteria to ceftazidime, cefepime, piperacillin tazobactam and tobramycin was less than 30.00%.
ConclusionsThe infants whose age are younger than 1 year comprise the majority of the hospitalized pediatric patients with respiratory tract infections. The proportion of male is more than that of female. Staphylococcus aureus and enterobacteriaceae were the main isolated pathogens. There is difference in drug resistance between different pathogens, so antibiotics should be chosen according to the results of drug sensitivity testing.
ObjectiveTo investigate the risk factors, prognostic factors and prognosis of Multidrug-Resistant Acinetobacter Baumannii (MDR-AB) infection of lower respiratory tract in Intensive Care Unit (ICU) of the Second Affiliated Hospital of Anhui Medical University.
MethodsUsing retrospective analysis, we reviewed and compared clinical data of 77 AB infections in lower respiratory tract cases in ICU from January 2013 to March 2015. According to the resistance, patients were divided into a MDR-AB group and a NMDR-AB group. Then the risk factors, prognostic factors and prognosis of MDR-AB infection were analyzed.
ResultsA total of 58 cases in the MDR-AB group, 19 cases in the NMDR-AB group were included. The result showed that, the MDR-AB infection in lower respiratory tract could significantly prolong the length of ICU stay (18.5±16.0 vs. 10.6±9.3 days, P<0.05) and increase the mortality (44.8% vs. 11.1%, P<0.01). Logistic regression analysis showed that the independent risk factors for MDR-AB infection in lower respiratory tract included Acute Physiology and Chronic Health Evaluation Ⅱ (Apache Ⅱ) score >15 (OR=0.138, 95%CI 0.03 to 0.625, P=0.01) and use of carbapenems (OR=0.066, 95%CI 0.012 to 0.0346, P=0.001). The independent prognostic factors included placement of drainage tube (OR=8.743, 95%CI 1.528 to 50.018, P=0.015) and use of vasoactive drugs (OR=12.227, 95%CI 2.817 to 53.074, P=0.001).
ConclusionThe MDR-AB infection in lower respiratory tract can significantly prolong the length of ICU stay and increase the mortality. The Apache Ⅱ score >15 and use of carbapenems are the risk factors, and the placement of drainage tube and use of vasoactive drugs can increase the mortality of MDR-AB infection of lower respiratory tract in ICU.
Objective To understand the changing patterns and characteristics of the number of patients hospitalized with acute exacerbation of chronic obstructive pulmonary disease (AECOPD) before, during, and in the post-epidemic period of the COVID-19 pandemic and the Association between acute respiratory infections and hospitalization of patients with AECOPD. Methods A retrospective analysis was conducted to count the patients hospitalized for AECOPD in the Department of Respiratory Medicine of the Third Affiliated Hospital of Chongqing Medical University from July 2017 to June 2024. The pattern of change in the number of AECOPD hospitalizations and the associations with patients with respiratory tract infections in outpatient emergency departments were analyzed. Results During the COVID-19 epidemic, the number of hospitalizations of patients with AECOPD did not increase compared with the pre-epidemic period. Instead, it significantly decreased, especially in the winter and spring peaks (P<0.05). The only exception was a peak AECOPD hospitalization in the summer of 2022. COPD inpatient mortality and non-medical discharge rates tended to increase during the epidemic compared with the pre-epidemic period. Analysis of the curve of change in the number of patients with respiratory infections in our outpatient emergency departments during the same period revealed a downward trend in the number of patients with respiratory infections during the epidemic and an explosive increase in the number of patients with respiratory infections in the post epidemic period, whose average monthly number was more than twice as high as that during the epidemic. Correlation analysis of the number of patients with respiratory infections between AECOPD hospitalizations and outpatient emergency departments showed that there was a good correlation between the two in the pre-epidemic and post-epidemic periods, and the correlation between the two in the post-epidemic period was more significant in particular (r=0.84-0.91, P<0.001).In contrast, there was no significant correlation in 2021 and 2022 during the epidemic (r=0.24 and 0.50, P>0.05 ). The most common respiratory infection pathogens among AECOPD hospitalized patients during the post-epidemic period were influenza virus, COVID-19 virus, and human rhinovirus, respectively. Conclusions The pandemic period of COVID-19 infection did not show an increase in the number of AECOPD hospitalizations but rather a trend towards fewer hospitalizations. Respiratory infections were strongly associated with the number of AECOPD hospitalizations in the pre- and post-pandemic periods, while the correlation between the two was poorer during the pandemic period. Influenza virus was the most important respiratory infection pathogen for AECOPD during the post-epidemic period.
COVID-19 associated fundus lesions are mostly vascular occlusion or inflammatory changes. The affected vessels include both retinal macrovessels and microvessels, and the inflammatory changes are mainly autoimmune lesions. Clinically, the different lesions present as various fundus diseases, with varying degrees of impact on visual function. The mechanism of these lesions is considered to be related to direct injury of SARS-CoV-2, abnormal coagulation or inflammatory response caused by SARS-CoV-2. Awareness of fundus lesions associated to COVID-19 is helpful to figure out the pathophysiological mechanism of COVID-19 and promote in-depth studies for a deeper and complete understanding of the occurrence and full impact of COVID-19, emphasizing the importance of early prevention and control of the disease, and highlighting the significance of early intervention of the fundus diseases caused by COVID-19.
Objective Respiratory syncytial virus ( RSV) is a primary cause of lower respiratory tract infections in children, and is also the cause for the development of asthma primarily in infants. However,the immunological mechanisms by which RSV enhances allergic sensitization and asthma remain unclear. The aimof this study was to examine the influence of RSV-infected airway epithelial cells on the activation and functions of rat myeloid dendritic cells ( mDCs) . Methods Rat airway epithelial cells ( RAECs) were infected by RSV. Then RSV-infected RAECs were co-cultured with rat mDCs, and the expression of cytokine and maturation markers on mDCs were examined by real time PCR and flow cytometry. To confirm this functional mDC maturation, allergenic mixed lymphocyte reaction ( MLR) were performed. Results Wefound that functional maturation of mDCs was induced by RSV-treated RAECs, as shown by their enhanced levels of OX40L and thymus- and activation-regulated chemokine ( TARC) mRNAs, which increased the expressions of major histocompatibility complex II ( MHCII) and CD86 costimulatorymolecules and promotedT-cell proliferation in mixed lymphocyte reactions. Conclusion Our results suggest that RSV-infected epithelial cells promote the maturation of mDCs that might support Th2 cell polarization and contribute to the pathogenesis of asthma.
ObjectiveTo summarize the progress of diagnosis and treatment of upper respiratory obstruction in patients with Treacher Collins syndrome (TCS).MethodsThe domestic and abroad literature about the diagnosis and treatment of upper respiratory obstruction in patients with TCS was extensively reviewed and analyzed.ResultsTCS is an autosomal-dominant craniofacial developmental syndrome. It is often accompanied by midface and/or mandibular hypoplasia, soft tissue hypertrophy, and other respiratory tissue developmental abnormalities, which can lead to different degrees of upper respiratory obstruction symptoms. Respiratory obstruction in patients with TCS is affected by many factors, and the obstructive degree are different. Early detection of the causes and obstructive sites and adopted targeted treatments can relieve the symptoms of respiratory obstruction and avoid severe complications.ConclusionDue to the low incidence of TCS, there is still a lack of high-quality research evidence to guide clinical treatment. Large-scale and prospective clinical studies are needed to provide new ideas for the treatment and prevention of upper respiratory obstruction.
Objective To explore the pathological diagnostic value of optical coherence tomography (OCT) in lung cancer. Methods This study selected patients who underwent general anesthesia and electronic bronchoscope biopsy at the Respiratory Endoscopy Center of Sichuan Provincial People’s Hospital from January 1, 2023, to December 1, 2023. White-light bronchoscopy (WLB), auto-fluorescence bronchoscopy (AFB), and OCT examinations were performed in all patients. Lesions were assessed for benign or malignant characteristics based on AFB and OCT before biopsy. The final pathological results were determined according to pathology report. Results A total of 124 patients were included in the study. The accuracy of OCT in differentiating the nature of lesions was 93.55%, significantly higher than AFB (accuracy 83.06%). The accuracy, sensitivity, and specificity of OCT were all higher than AFB. For squamous carcinoma, adenocarcinoma, and small cell lung cancer, the accuracy rates of OCT imaging characteristics were 91.94%, 94.35%, and 94.35%, respectively. Conclusion OCT can improve the accuracy of pre-bronchoscopic tissue pathology biopsy in determining the nature of lesions and provide rapid pathological typing basis, potentially further promoting the development of non-invasive histological biopsy.
Objective To investigate the causal relationship between 91 circulating inflammatory proteins and respiratory tract infection by bidirectional Mendelian randomization. Methods single nucleotide polymorphisms (SNPs) for 91 inflammatory circulating proteins were derived from GWAS data from a genome-wide association study of 14 824 subjects of European ancestry on the Olink Target platform, and SNPs for acute bronchitis, acute bronchiolitis, and acute laryngitis and tracheitis were derived from GWAS pooled data in the FinnGen database. Inverse variance weighting method was used as the main research method to conduct bidirectional Mendelian randomization analysis, and Cochran’ IVW Q test, MR-Egger regression method and one by one elimination method were used to conduct sensitivity tests to evaluate heterogeneity and horizontal pleiotropy. In order to reduce the incidence of Class I errors and improve the feasibility of the study, Bonferroni correction was performed.ResultsLevels of C hemokine C-X-C motif ligand 6 (CXCL6), matrix metalloproteinase-1 (MMP-1), hepatocyte growth factor (HGF), interleukin-10 (IL-10), chemokine C-X3-C motif ligand 1 (CX3CL1), and TNF-related activation-induced cytokine (TRANCE) were causally associated with acute bronchitis. MMP-1 level [OR: 1.239 0, 95%CI: 1.111 6-1.382 2, P<0.000 5] had a significant causal relationship with acute bronchitiss and played a promoting role. Levels of macrophage inflammatory protein-1α (MIP-1α), signaling lymphocyte activating molecules, and FMS-associated tyrosine kinase 3 ligand (FIt3L) were potentially causally associated with acute bronchiolitis. There was a potential causal relationship between C-X-C motif chemokine 5 (CXCL5), T cell surface glycoprotein CD6 subtype (CD6), fibroblast growth factor 19 (FGF-19), C-C motif chemokine 23 (CCL23), monocyte chemoattractant protein-1 (MCP-1), tumor necrosis factor ligand superfamily member 12 (TNFSF12) levels and acute laryngitis and tracheitis. In reverse Mendelian randomization analysis, there were no positive results between acute bronchitis, acute bronchiolitis and 91 inflammatory factors. Acute laryngitis and tracheitis [OR: 1.076 3,95%CI: 1.012 9-1.143 7, P=0.017 6] were potentially causally associated with FGF-19 levels. Conclusions MMP-1 level have a significant causal relationship with acute bronchitis. The levels of other inflammatory factors such as CXCL6, HGF, MIP-1 alpha, FIt3L, CXCL5, FGF-19 are potentially causally associated with respiratory tract infections. MMP-1 may be an important target for the prediction or treatment of acute bronchitis.
