[Impact of Staphylococcus aureus bacteremia in COVID-19 patients]. / Impacto de la bacteriemia por Staphylococcus aureus en pacientes con COVID-19.

OBJECTIVE: The disease caused by SARS-CoV-2 (COVID-19) has been a challenge for healthcare professionals since its appearance. Staphylococcus aureus has been described as one of the main pathogens causing bacterial infections in viral pandemics. However, co- infection with S. aureus causing bacteremia in patients with COVID-19 has yet to be well studied. METHODS: We performed a e study of S. aureus bacteremia (SAB) at Hospital Miguel Servet (Zaragoza) from March 2020 to February 2021. The clinical characteristics, mortality and risk factors of adults hospitalized patients with BSA associated COVID-19 compared to patients without COVID-19. RESULTS: A total of 95 patients with SAB were identified. 27.3% were positive for SARS-CoV-2. SAB represented 9.9% of bacteremia, being the second agent in frequency after E. coli. Nosocomial bacteremia was more frequent in the group of COVID-19 patients. The most frequent source of BSA in these patients was the respiratory source (26.9% vs 0%; P<0.001) followed by the skin (15.5% vs 15.9%; P=1). The development of sepsis was more frequent in COVID-19 patients (61,5% vs 7,8%; P=0,336) and among them, who received dexamethasone at doses > 6 mg/day (62.5% vs. 37.5%, P<0.05). CONCLUSIONS: Our data suggest that BSA has a negative impact on the evolution of patients with COVID-19. However, further and preferably prospective studies are required to obtain solid data on the impact of BSA on coronavirus patients.

[Impact of SARS-COV-2 on the diagnosis of community bacteremia in a tertiary hospital]. / Impacto del SARS-CoV-2 en el diagnóstico de bacteriemia comunitaria en un hospital terciario.

OBJECTIVE: We carry out an analysis of the bacteremia diagnosed in the Emergency Department during 2020, coinciding with the period of the pandemic. METHODS: We performed a retrospective analysis from March 4, 2020 to December 31, 2020. RESULTS: The number of patients who went to the Emergency Department during the study period and the number of extracted blood cultures decreased by 46.79% and 35.7% compared to the same period in 2019 (p <0.05). 320 bacteremia occurred while 507 occurred in 2019, assuming a decrease of 36.8% (p <0.05). The positivity rate of blood cultures was 7.09% in 2020 and 7.23% in 2019 and the contamination rate was 7.07 % in 2020 and 5.67% in 2019. The most frequently isolated microorganism was Escherichia coli, followed by Staphylococcus aureus and Klebsiella pneumoniae. A 6.62% of the isolated E. coli were carriers of extended-spectrum beta-lactamases (ESBL). The percentage of methicillin-resistant S. aureus was 12.9 % and that of K. pneumoniae ESBL was 11.54%. CONCLUSIONS: During the SARS-CoV-2 pandemic there has been a decrease in the number of bacteremia diagnoses, it is possible that attention was focused especially on COVID, forgetting other diseases, such as bacteremia.

What happened to infectious diseases and anti-infective therapy in 2020 beyond COVID-19?

The year 2020 was the year of infectious diseases with the arrival of SARS-CoV-2, which represented a profound change in the world we knew. However, we present a brief description of some of the top infectious diseases articles from 2020 not related with SARS-CoV-2. We reviewed a selection of the most important and relevant achievements in diagnosis and therapy related to bacteremia, nosocomial pneumonia, skin and soft tissue infections, infections by Clostridioides difficile, mycobacterial infections and invasive fungal infections. This year entailed a significant step forward in the indisputable value of the health care stewardship programs.