ABSTRACT
The global onset of severe acute respiratory syndrome coronavirus 2 (SARS-CoV-2) virus infections happened suddenly, hence imposing a rapid definition of effective therapeutic approaches. Antibiotics were included among the prophylactic agents because of both the similarity between SARS-CoV-2 and atypical pneumonia symptoms, and the immune-modulating and anti-inflammatory properties of such drugs. Although, this approach could exacerbate the emergence of antimicrobial resistance. To evaluate the impact of the COVID-19 pandemic on the spread and characteristics of bacterial infections, as well as on the frequency of antimicrobial resistance, we investigated and compared clinical bacterial strains isolated in an Italian hospital from COVID-19 patients and non-COVID-19 patients during and before the COVID-19 outbreak. Data clearly indicate the impact of the COVID-19 pandemic on bacterial infections: not only some bacterial species were found in either COVID-19 positive or in COVID-19 negative patients, but isolates from COVID-19 patients also showed higher levels of antimicrobial resistance. Nevertheless, despite some bacterial species were isolated only before or over the pandemic, no differences were observed among the antimicrobial resistance levels. Overall, these results recapitulate the current situation of microbial infections and could also provide an overview of the impact of COVID-19 on bacterial pathogens spread and resistance.
ABSTRACT
Background: In the current SARS-Coronavirus-2 (SARS-CoV-2) pandemic little is known about SARS-CoV-2 in human milk. It is important to discover if breast milk is a vehicle of infection. Objective: Our aim was to look for the presence of SARS-CoV-2 RNA in the milk of a group of SARS-CoV-2 positive mothers from North-West Italy. Methods: This is a prospective collaborative observational study where samples of human milk from 14 breastfeeding mothers positive for SARS-CoV-2 were collected. A search of viral RNA in breast milk samples was performed by RT-PCR (Real-Time reverse-transcriptase-Polymerase-Chain-Reaction) methodology tested for human milk. All the newborns underwent a clinical follow up during the first month of life or until the finding of two sequential negative swabs. Results: In 13 cases the search for SARS-CoV-2 RNA in milk samples resulted negative and in one case it was positive. Thirteen of the 14 newborns were exclusively breastfed and closely monitored in the first month of life. Clinical outcome was uneventful. Four newborns tested positive for SARS-CoV-2 and were all detected in the first 48 h of life, after the onset of maternal symptoms. Also the clinical course of these 4 infants, including the one who received mother's milk positive for SARS-CoV-2, was uneventful, and all of them became SARS-CoV-2 negative within 6 weeks of life. Conclusion: Our study supports the view that SARS-CoV-2 positive mothers do not expose their newborns to an additional risk of infection by breastfeeding.
ABSTRACT
In order to monitor the spread of antimicrobial resistance, the European Union requires hospitals to be equipped with infection control centers. With this aim, we analyzed 1583 bacterial strains isolated from samples of different origin from patients with community-onset and nosocomial infections in a public tertiary University Hospital on the outskirts of Turin, Italy. Statistical analyses of the isolates (source, type) and their antimicrobial resistance (AMR) were performed. The survey revealed infections associated with bacterial species considered as not-commensal and not-pathogenic, hence potentially emerging as new threats for human health. Conversely to the general observation of nosocomial strains being more resistant to antibiotics compared to community-acquired strains, nosocomial strains isolated in this study were more resistant only to 1/42 tested antibiotics (tetracycline). By adopting an ecological approach, we observed that blood infections are associated with the broadest range of species compared to infections affecting other areas and we obtained clear indications on the antibiotics that should be preferred in the treatment of infections at specific body sites. Future investigations carried out on a larger geographical scale will clarify whether these indications are limited to the geographical region investigated over this study, or whether the same trends are visible at national or international level.
