http://medicalxpress.com/ en-us Medical Xpress internet news portal provides the latest news on Health and Medicine. Treatment areas of ambulances fared well when tested for dangerous bacteria, according to a new study published in the April issue of the American Journal of Infection Control, the official publication of APIC - the Association for Professionals in Infection Control and Epidemiology. Approximately six percent of sites sampled in Chicago-area ambulances tested positive for Staphyloccocus aureus (S. aureus), a bacterium that can cause serious infections and can easily acquire resistance to potent antibiotics. http://medicalxpress.com/news/2012-03-resistant-bacteria-chicago-area-ambulances.html Diseases, Conditions, Syndromes Thu, 29 Mar 2012 09:40:02 EST news252232044 Infection preventionists and healthcare epidemiologists play key roles in promoting effective antimicrobial stewardship in collaboration with other health professionals, according to a joint position paper published today by the Association for Professionals in Infection Control and Epidemiology (APIC) and the Society for Healthcare Epidemiology of America (SHEA) in their respective peer-review journals, the American Journal of Infection Control and Infection Control and Hospital Epidemiology. http://medicalxpress.com/news/2012-03-infection-groups-outline-antibiotics.html Diseases, Conditions, Syndromes Mon, 19 Mar 2012 11:44:51 EST news251376282 (HealthDay) -- Most California hospitals implement some policies to improve infection control for multidrug-resistant organisms (MDRO), primarily methicillin-resistant Staphylococcus aureus (MRSA), but few policies are associated with lower MDRO rates, according to a study published in the March issue of the American Journal of Infection Control. http://medicalxpress.com/news/2012-03-california-hospitals-infection.html Diseases, Conditions, Syndromes Sat, 17 Mar 2012 06:10:14 EST news251183404 Curbing unnecessary use of antibiotics is our best defense against the spread of drug-resistant infections. A new study suggests another benefit to antimicrobial stewardship: a potential cost savings of millions of dollars now wasted on therapies that don't help patients. http://medicalxpress.com/news/2012-03-antibiotic-millions.html Diseases, Conditions, Syndromes Thu, 15 Mar 2012 05:14:09 EST news251007206 Hospitals whose infection prevention and control programs are led by a director who is board certified in infection prevention and control have significantly lower rates of methicillin-resistant Staphylococcus aureus (MRSA) bloodstream infections (BSI) than those that are not led by a certified professional, according to a new study published in the March issue of the American Journal of Infection Control, the official publication of APIC - the Association for Professionals in Infection Control and Epidemiology. http://medicalxpress.com/news/2012-03-infection-certification-mrsa.html Diseases, Conditions, Syndromes Fri, 09 Mar 2012 10:59:01 EST news250513132 The U.S. Department of Health and Human Services (HHS) estimates that about one in every 20 patients develops an infection each year related to their hospital care. The key to preventing an outbreak of potentially deadly healthcare-associated infections (HAIs) -- such as methicillin-resistant Staphylococcus aureus (MRSA) or C. difficile -- is identifying them before affected individuals can pose a transmission risk. http://medicalxpress.com/news/2012-03-collaboration-rapid-response-health-care-associated-infections.html Diseases, Conditions, Syndromes Thu, 08 Mar 2012 10:47:26 EST news250426040 Norovirus, a pathogen that often causes food poisoning and gastroenteritis, was responsible for 18.2 percent of all infection outbreaks and 65 percent of ward closures in U.S. hospitals during a two-year period, according to a new study published in the February issue of the American Journal of Infection Control (AJIC), the official publication of APIC - the Association for Professionals in Infection Control and Epidemiology. http://medicalxpress.com/news/2012-01-norovirus-infection-outbreaks-hospitals.html Diseases, Conditions, Syndromes Tue, 31 Jan 2012 11:30:50 EST news247231831 (Medical Xpress) -- The use of antimicrobial impregnated scrubs combined with good hand hygiene is effective in reducing the burden of Methicillin-Resistant Staphylococcus Aureus (MRSA) on health care workers’ apparel and may potentially play a role in decreasing the risk of MRSA transmission to patients, according to a new study from Virginia Commonwealth University researchers. http://medicalxpress.com/news/2012-01-antimicrobial-bacterial-burden-health-worker.html Diseases, Conditions, Syndromes Thu, 19 Jan 2012 06:40:01 EST news246177029 Only 21 percent of surveyed medical students could identify five true and two false indications of when and when not to wash their hands in the clinical setting, according to a study published in the December issue of the American Journal of Infection Control, the official publication of APIC - the Association for Professionals in Infection Control and Epidemiology. http://medicalxpress.com/news/2011-12-medical-students.html Other Thu, 01 Dec 2011 12:31:15 EST news241964947 Nurses have an obligation to disclose an error when one occurs. While errors should be avoided as much as possible, the reality is the health care delivery system is not and will never be perfect; errors and adverse events are an inevitable part of care. http://medicalxpress.com/news/2011-11-nursing-error-disclosure-homes.html Health Fri, 04 Nov 2011 15:10:01 EST news239637477 Multidrug-resistant Acinetobacter baumannii (MDR-AB) was found in the environment of 48 percent of the rooms of patients colonized or infected with the pathogen, according to a new study published in the November issue of the American Journal of Infection Control, the official publication of APIC - the Association for Professionals in Infection Control and Epidemiology. http://medicalxpress.com/news/2011-11-acinetobacter-baumannii-infected-patient-rooms.html Diseases, Conditions, Syndromes Tue, 01 Nov 2011 10:16:55 EST news239361405 Researchers studying hand hygiene of healthcare workers in the emergency department found certain care situations, including bed location and type of healthcare worker performing care, resulted in poorer hand hygiene practice. The study was reported in the November issue of Infection Control and Hospital Epidemiology, the journal of the Society for Healthcare Epidemiology of America. http://medicalxpress.com/news/2011-10-predictors-poor-hygiene-emergency-department.html Other Mon, 03 Oct 2011 11:28:57 EST news236860131 A new study from Rhode Island Hospital shows that guidelines concerning testing patients for possible community-acquired pneumonia due to Legionella may underestimate the number of cases being seen by clinicians. The study found that if testing was only done in patients felt to be at increased risk of Legionnaires' disease based on such guidelines, more than 40 percent of Legionella cases could be missed based on this single-center study. The researchers suggest more widespread testing for Legionella in patients admitted to hospitals with pneumonia. The study is published in BMC Infectious Diseases and is now available online in advance of print. http://medicalxpress.com/news/2011-09-lack-legionella.html Diseases, Conditions, Syndromes Tue, 27 Sep 2011 10:26:51 EST news236337997 A study published in the October issue of Infection Control and Hospital Epidemiology, the journal of the Society for Healthcare Epidemiology of America, uses a famous case of international intrigue and murder to shed new light on the risks health care workers face while treating patients with radiation poisoning. http://medicalxpress.com/news/2011-09-polonium-poisoning-case-infection.html Diseases, Conditions, Syndromes Mon, 12 Sep 2011 12:10:48 EST news235048239 More than 60 percent of hospital nurses' and doctors' uniforms tested positive for potentially dangerous bacteria, according to a study published in the September issue of the American Journal of Infection Control, the official publication of APIC - the Association for Professionals in Infection Control and Epidemiology. http://medicalxpress.com/news/2011-08-doctors-nurses-hospital-uniforms-dangerous.html Diseases, Conditions, Syndromes Wed, 31 Aug 2011 09:50:21 EST news234003000 Afghan patients treated at a U.S. military hospital in Afghanistan often carry multidrug-resistant (MDR) bacteria, according to a report in the September issue of Infection Control and Hospital Epidemiology, the journal of the Society for Healthcare Epidemiology of America. The findings underscore the need for effective infection control measures at deployed hospitals where both soldiers and local patients are treated, the study's authors say. http://medicalxpress.com/news/2011-08-afghan-patients-common-source-drug-resistant.html Diseases, Conditions, Syndromes Tue, 23 Aug 2011 12:14:12 EST news233320376 Increased hand hygiene knowledge positively correlates with a decreased risk of transmitting infection among both healthcare workers (HCW) and elementary school children, according to two studies published in the August issue of the American Journal of Infection Control (AJIC), the official publication of APIC - the Association for Professionals in Infection Control and Epidemiology. http://medicalxpress.com/news/2011-08-hygiene-knowledge-infection-hospitals-elementary.html Diseases, Conditions, Syndromes Thu, 04 Aug 2011 12:40:40 EST news231680148 Bone marrow transplant survival more than doubled in recent years for young, high-risk leukemia patients treated at St. Jude Children's Research Hospital, with patients who lacked genetically matched donors recording the most significant gains. The results are believed to be the best ever reported for leukemia patients who underwent bone marrow transplantation. http://medicalxpress.com/news/2011-07-bone-marrow-transplant-survival-young.html Medical research Thu, 14 Jul 2011 11:30:01 EST news229860377 A study from the microbiology lab at the Lifespan hospitals has found that some lab tests are much more accurate in identifying Clostridium difficile Toxin (C. diff) infection (CDI), which causes diarrhea. The findings indicate that a molecular method detects up to 50 percent more cases of C. diff than other methods. While molecular technology is more expensive, it allows for more cases to be identified and assists in patient safety efforts within the hospital in terms of preventing hospital-acquired C. diff infections. The study is published online the July issue of the Journal of Molecular Diagnostics. http://medicalxpress.com/news/2011-07-equal-diff-hospital-labs.html Diseases, Conditions, Syndromes Tue, 05 Jul 2011 11:34:43 EST news229084469 Professor Bill Keevil, Head of the Microbiology Group and Director of the Environmental Healthcare Unit at the University of Southampton, has presented research into the mechanism by which copper exerts its antimicrobial effect on antibiotic-resistant organisms at the World Health Organization's first International Conference on Prevention and Infection Control (ICPIC). http://medicalxpress.com/news/2011-07-copper-infection-percent.html Diseases, Conditions, Syndromes Fri, 01 Jul 2011 10:39:08 EST news228735533 A simple roll of duct tape has proven to be an inexpensive solution to the costly and time-consuming problem of communicating with hospital patients who are isolated with dangerous infections. http://medicalxpress.com/news/2011-06-duct-tape-strategy-hospitals-money.html Other Mon, 27 Jun 2011 10:01:20 EST news228387664 The American Society for Gastrointestinal Endoscopy (ASGE) and the Society for Healthcare Epidemiology of America (SHEA) have updated their 2003 joint guideline for reprocessing gastrointestinal endoscopes to reaffirm reprocessing methods and take into account evolved technology and disinfection systems. http://medicalxpress.com/news/2011-06-asge-shea-issue-multisociety-guideline.html Other Wed, 01 Jun 2011 13:09:25 EST news226152535 Cell phones used by patients and their visitors were twice as likely to contain potentially dangerous bacteria as those of healthcare workers (HCW), according to a study published in the June issue of the American Journal of Infection Control, the official publication of APIC - the Association for Professionals in Infection Control and Epidemiology. http://medicalxpress.com/news/2011-05-dangerous-bacteria-cell-hospital-patients.html Diseases, Conditions, Syndromes Tue, 31 May 2011 11:42:01 EST news226060901 Fifteen percent of U.S. nursing homes receive deficiency citations for infection control per year, according to a new study published in the May issue of the American Journal of Infection Control, the official publication of APIC - the Association for Professionals in Infection Control and Epidemiology. http://medicalxpress.com/news/2011-05-infection-violations-percent-nursing-homes.html Health Tue, 03 May 2011 10:36:36 EST news223637781