Sharp decline in rates of community respiratory viral detection among patients at the National Institutes of Health Clinical Center during the coronavirus disease 2019 (COVID-19) pandemic.

OBJECTIVES: To analyze the frequency and rates of community respiratory virus infections detected in patients at the National Institutes of Health Clinical Center (NIHCC) between January 2015 and March 2021, comparing the trends before and during the coronavirus disease 2019 (COVID-19) pandemic. METHODS: We conducted a retrospective study comparing frequency and rates of community respiratory viruses detected in NIHCC patients between January 2015 and March 2021. Test results from nasopharyngeal swabs and washes, bronchoalveolar lavages, and bronchial washes were included in this study. Results from viral-challenge studies and repeated positives were excluded. A quantitative data analysis was completed using cross tabulations. Comparisons were performed using mixed models, applying the Dunnett correction for multiplicity. RESULTS: Frequency of all respiratory pathogens declined from an annual range of 0.88%-1.97% between January 2015 and March 2020 to 0.29% between April 2020 and March 2021. Individual viral pathogens declined sharply in frequency during the same period, with no cases of influenza A/B orparainfluenza and 1 case of respiratory syncytial virus (RSV). Rhino/enterovirusdetection continued, but with a substantially lower frequency of 4.27% between April 2020 and March 2021, compared with an annual range of 8.65%-18.28% between January 2015 and March 2020. CONCLUSIONS: The decrease in viral respiratory infections detected in NIHCC patients during the pandemic was likely due to the layered COVID-19 prevention and mitigation measures implemented in the community and the hospital. Hospitals should consider continuing the use of nonpharmaceutical interventions in the future to prevent nosocomial transmission of respiratory viruses during times of high community viral load.

Management of Unique Pneumonias Seen in the Intensive Care Unit.

Infection of the lower respiratory tract is a potentially severe or life-threatening illness. Taking the right steps to recognize, identify, and treat pneumonia is critical to improving patient outcomes. An awareness of the diversity of potential infectious causes, the local endemic flora and resistance patterns, as well as testing strategies to differentiate causes of pneumonia is essential to providing the best patient outcomes. Understanding surveillance definitions allow intensivists to become partners in reducing hospital-associated infections and improving quality of care.

Factors That Affect Legionella Positivity in Healthcare Building Water Systems from a Large, National Environmental Surveillance Initiative.

Legionella growth in healthcare building water systems can result in legionellosis, making water management programs (WMPs) important for patient safety. However, knowledge is limited on Legionella prevalence in healthcare buildings. A dataset of quarterly water testing in Veterans Health Administration (VHA) healthcare buildings was used to examine national environmental Legionella prevalence from 2015 to 2018. Bayesian hierarchical logistic regression modeling assessed factors influencing Legionella positivity. The master dataset included 201,146 water samples from 814 buildings at 168 VHA campuses. Overall Legionella positivity over the 4 years decreased from 7.2 to 5.1%, with the odds of a Legionella-positive sample being 0.94 (0.90-0.97) times the odds of a positive sample in the previous quarter for the 16 quarters of the 4 year period. Positivity varied considerably more at the medical center campus level compared to regional levels or to the building level where controls are typically applied. We found higher odds of Legionella detection in older buildings (OR 0.92 [0.86-0.98] for each more recent decade of construction), in taller buildings (OR 1.20 [1.13-1.27] for each additional floor), in hot water samples (O.R. 1.21 [1.16-1.27]), and in samples with lower residual biocide concentrations. This comprehensive healthcare building review showed reduced Legionella detection in the VHA healthcare system over time. Insights into factors associated with Legionella positivity provide information for healthcare systems implementing WMPs and for organizations setting standards and regulations.

Detection of Vancomycin-Resistant Enterococcus faecium Endocarditis After Clearance of Vancomycin-Sensitive Enterococcus faecium Bacteremia.

Vancomycin-resistant enterococcal (VRE) bacteremia is associated with higher mortality rates and longer hospitalizations than vancomycin-sensitive enterococcal (VSE) bacteremia. A 67-year-old man with a right psoas abscess and pacemaker-associated tricuspid valve endocarditis in September 2020 grew VSE Enterococcus faecium from blood cultures that cleared after administration of intravenous vancomycin and gentamicin. Subsequently, he underwent tricuspid valve repair, pacemaker removal, and partial lead extraction. Valve and postoperative blood cultures grew VRE E. faecium, which cleared after administration of intravenous daptomycin. One VSE and two VRE isolates were collected and sequenced. All isolates belonged to E. faecium multilocus sequence type ST17 and were closely related, having <20 mutations in pairwise genome comparisons. Vancomycin resistance was due to the acquisition of a plasmid-encoded VanA operon. None of the isolates encoded the virulence factors asa1, gelE, cylA, or hyl; all encoded a homologue of efaAfm. VSE E. faecium, but not VRE E. faecium isolates, encoded a glucose transporter gene mutation. Two VRE E. faecium isolates formed more robust biofilms than the VSE E. faecium isolate (p < 0.001). The VRE E. faecium isolates, which generated larger biofilms than the VSE E. faecium isolate, could have remained protected in the heart valve and only caused bacteremia when disrupted during cardiac surgery. This study demonstrates that bacteria detected in the bloodstream of patients with endocarditis may not fully represent the organisms adherent to the cardiac valves or indwelling devices.

Introduction of the BNT162b2 vaccine during a COVID-19 nursing home outbreak.

BACKGROUND: Coronavirus disease 2019 (COVID-19) outbreaks often occur in nursing homes and prompt frequent surveillance testing for SARS-CoV-2. A single dose of the BNT162b2 vaccine reduces viral load and transmission. In this study, we describe the real-world efficacy of BNT162b2 single-dose vaccination during a COVID-19 outbreak at a Veterans Affairs Community Living Center (CLC). METHODS: From 12/2/20 to 5/14/21, twice weekly antigen testing was used to detect COVID-19 among 146 residents at the CLC. Residents without a prior history of COVID-19 who agreed to immunization were vaccinated with the BNT162b2 vaccine on 12/16/20 and 1/6/21. Single-dose vaccine efficacy was determined for days 1-21 and days 14-21 after the first vaccine dose. RESULTS: The outbreak occurred from 12/2/20 to 1/7/21 with an attack rate of 30.8% (45/146); 46.7% (21/45) of the cases were due to asymptomatic COVID-19. One unit accounted for 77.8% (35/45) of the cases. In the vaccine analysis, 116 residents were a median age of 74.5 years and 93.1% (108/116) had ≥ 1 comorbid condition. Between the first and second dose, 15.5% (15/97) of vaccinated residents, and 21.2% (4/19) of unvaccinated residents developed COVID-19 (P = .81). One week after the second dose, no cases of COVID-19 occurred. CONCLUSIONS: Albeit limited by the small numbers, a single dose of the BNT162b2 vaccine was not efficacious at preventing COVID-19 during this nursing home outbreak.

Single Dose of an mRNA Severe Acute Respiratory Syndrome Coronavirus 2 (SARS-Cov-2) Vaccine Is Associated With Lower Nasopharyngeal Viral Load Among Nursing Home Residents With Asymptomatic Coronavirus Disease 2019 (COVID-19).

In nursing home residents with asymptomatic COVID-19 diagnosed through twice-weekly surveillance testing, single-dose BNT162b2 vaccination (Pfizer-BioNTech) was associated with -2.4 mean log10 lower nasopharyngeal viral load than detected in absence of vaccination (P = .004). Since viral load is linked to transmission, single-dose mRNA SARS-CoV-2 vaccination may help control outbreaks.

SARS-CoV-2 is associated with high viral loads in asymptomatic and recently symptomatic healthcare workers.

BACKGROUND: Healthcare workers (HCW) are at increased risk of SARS-CoV-2 infection from both patients and other HCW with coronavirus disease 2019 (COVID-19). RT-PCR cycle threshold (Ct) values of SARS-CoV-2 ≤ 34 and the first 7-9 days of symptoms are associated with enhanced infectivity. We determined Ct values and duration of symptoms of HCW with a positive SARS-CoV-2 test. As HCW often assume their greatest risk of acquiring SARS-CoV-2 is working on a COVID-19 unit, we also determined Ct values and symptom duration of inpatients with a positive SARS-CoV-2 test. METHODS: From 6/24/2020-8/23/2020, Ct values and duration of symptoms from 13 HCW, 12 outpatients, and 28 inpatients who had a positive nasopharyngeal swab for SARS-CoV-2 were analyzed. RESULTS: Among HCW with a positive SARS-CoV-2 test, 46.2% (6/13) were asymptomatic and requested testing due to an exposure to someone with COVID-19; 83.3% (5/6) of those exposures occurred in the community rather than in the hospital. The median Ct value of HCW was 23.2, and 84.6% (11/13) had a Ct value ≤ 34. The median Ct value of 29.0 among outpatients with COVID-19 did not significantly differ from HCW. In contrast, inpatients with a positive SARS-CoV-2 test had a median Ct value of 34.0 (p = 0.003), which translated into a median ~1,000-fold lower viral load than observed in HCW. Among those with symptoms related to COVID-19, no (0/6) HCW compared to 50% (6/12) of inpatients had symptoms for at least one week (p = 0.04). CONCLUSIONS: At our institution, asymptomatic COVID-19 accounted for nearly half of the cases among HCW. Symptomatic HCW had high viral loads and short duration of symptoms, both of which are associated with peak infectivity. Infection prevention programs should educate HCW on these findings in an effort to increase adherence to the requirement to maintain six feet separation in workspaces and breakrooms, in addition to consistently wearing personal protection equipment.

Decreased Overall and Inappropriate Antibiotic Prescribing in a Veterans Affairs Hospital Emergency Department following a Peer Comparison-Based Stewardship Intervention.

Antibiotic prescribing is very common in emergency departments (EDs). Optimal stewardship intervention strategies in EDs are not well defined. We conducted a prospective, observational cohort study in a Veterans Affairs ED in which clinician education and monthly e-mail-based peer comparisons were directed against all oral antibiotic prescribing for discharged patients. Oral antibiotic prescriptions were compared in baseline (June 2016 to December 2017) and intervention (January to June 2018) periods using an interrupted time series regression model. Prescribing appropriateness was compared during January to June 2017 and the intervention period. During the intervention period, antibiotic prescriptions decreased monthly by 10.4 prescriptions per 1,000 ED visits (P = 0.07 [95% confidence interval {CI}, -21.7 to 1.0]). The relative decrease in the trend of antibiotic prescriptions during the intervention period compared to baseline was 9.9 prescriptions per 1,000 ED visits per month (P = 0.07 [95% CI, -20.9 to 1.0]). The intervention was associated with a significant decrease and increase in amoxicillin-clavulanate and cephalexin prescriptions, respectively (P < 0.001, P = 0.004). Decreasing trends in ciprofloxacin prescriptions during the baseline period were maintained during the intervention. Unnecessary antibiotic prescribing (i.e., antibiotic not indicated) decreased from 55.6% to 38.7% during the intervention (30.4% decrease, P = 0.003). Optimal antibiotic prescribing (i.e., antibiotics were indicated, and a guideline-concordant agent was prescribed for guideline-concordant duration) increased by 36% (21.6% to 29.3%, P = 0.12). A peer comparison-based stewardship intervention directed at ED clinicians was associated with reductions in overall and unnecessary oral antibiotic prescribing. There is potential to further improve antibiotic use as suboptimal prescribing remained common.

Antibiotic Consumption and Stewardship at a Hospital outside of an Early Coronavirus Disease 2019 Epicenter.

There are scant data on the impact of coronavirus disease 2019 (COVID-19) on hospital antibiotic consumption, and no data from outside epicenters. At our nonepicenter hospital, antibiotic days of therapy (DOT) and bed days of care (BDOC) were reduced by 151.5/month and 285/month, respectively, for March to June 2020 compared to 2018-2019 (P = 0.001 and P < 0.001). DOT per 1,000 BDOC was increased (8.1/month; P = 0.001). COVID-19 will impact antibiotic consumption, stewardship, and resistance in ways that will likely differ temporally and by region.

Suprapubic catheter placement improves antimicrobial stewardship among Veterans Affairs nursing care facility residents.

In a Veterans Affairs nursing facility, suprapubic catheters were associated with significantly fewer urinary tract infections (catheter-associated urinary tract infection) than were indwelling urinary catheters (mean: 0.95 vs 4.5/1,000 device-days, P = .05) among 18 patients with a history of both catheter types. Suprapubic catheters were associated with significantly shorter antibiotic treatment courses for catheter-associated urinary tract infection or asymptomatic bacteriuria (mean: 28.3 vs 88.8 days, P = .02).

Clinical Presentation of Community-Acquired Legionella Pneumonia Identified by Universal Testing in an Endemic Area.

The rapid identification of Legionella pneumonia is essential to optimize patient treatment and outcomes, and to identify potential public health risks. Previous studies have identified clinical factors which are more common in Legionella than non-Legionella pneumonia, and scores have been developed to assist in diagnosing cases. Since a Legionella pneumonia outbreak at VA Pittsburgh in 2012, nearly all patients with pneumonia have been tested for Legionella. The purpose of this study was to evaluate distinguishing characteristics between Legionella and non-Legionella pneumonia with the application of universal testing for Legionella in all cases of community-acquired pneumonia. We performed a retrospective case-control study matching Legionella and non-Legionella pneumonia cases occurring in the same month. Between January 2013 and February 2016, 17 Legionella and 54 non-Legionella cases were identified and reviewed. No tested characteristics were significantly associated with Legionella cases after Bonferroni correction. Outcomes of Legionella and non-Legionella pneumonia were comparable. Therefore, in veterans who underwent routine Legionella testing in an endemic area, factors typically associated with Legionella pneumonia were non-discriminatory.

Sustained Reductions in Overall and Unnecessary Antibiotic Prescribing at Primary Care Clinics in a Veterans Affairs Healthcare System Following a Multifaceted Stewardship Intervention.

BACKGROUND: Most antibiotic prescribing is in outpatient settings. However, antibiotic stewardship has focused overwhelmingly on hospitalized patients. In a few studies, behavioral interventions decreased unnecessary outpatient prescribing against acute respiratory infections, but data are conflicting on sustained benefits after intervention discontinuation. METHODS: We conducted a prospective, observational study in 7 primary care clinics, in which an intervention comprised of clinician education, peer comparisons, and computer decision support order sets was directed against all antibiotic prescribing. After 6 months, peer comparisons were discontinued. Antibiotic prescribing was compared in the baseline (January-June 2016), intervention (January-June 2017), and postintervention (January-June 2018) periods. RESULTS: Mean antibiotic prescriptions significantly decreased from 76.9 (baseline) to 49.5 (intervention) and 56.3 (postintervention) per 1000 visits (35.6% and 26.8% reductions, respectively; P values < .001). The rate of unnecessary antibiotic prescribing (ie, antibiotic not indicated) decreased from 58.8% (baseline) to 37.8% (intervention) and 44.3% (postintervention) (35.7% and 24.7% decreases, respectively; P = .001 and P = .01). Overall, 19.9% (27/136), 36.6% (66/180), and 34.9% (67/192) of antibiotics were prescribed optimally (ie, antibiotics were indicated, and a guideline-concordant agent was prescribed for guideline-concordant duration) during the baseline, intervention, and postintervention periods, respectively (baseline vs intervention and postintervention, P = .001 and P = .003, respectively). Differences between intervention and postintervention periods in overall, unnecessary, or optimal antibiotic prescribing were not significant. CONCLUSIONS: A multifaceted outpatient stewardship intervention achieved reductions in overall, unnecessary, and suboptimal antibiotic prescription rates, which were sustained for a year after components of the intervention were discontinued. There is opportunity for further improvement, as inappropriate and suboptimal prescribing remained common.

Bacterial and Fungal Etiology of Sepsis in Children in the United States: Reconsidering Empiric Therapy.

OBJECTIVES: Timely empiric antimicrobial therapy is associated with improved outcomes in pediatric sepsis, but minimal data exist to guide empiric therapy. We sought to describe the prevalence of four pathogens that are not part of routine empiric coverage (e.g., Staphylococcus aureus, Pseudomonas aeruginosa, Clostridium difficile, and fungal infections) in pediatric sepsis patients in a contemporary nationally representative sample. DESIGN: This was a retrospective cohort study using administrative data. SETTING: We used the Nationwide Readmissions Database from 2014, which is a nationally representative dataset that contains data from nearly half of all discharges from nonfederal hospitals in the United States. PATIENTS: Discharges of patients who were less than 19 years old at discharge and were not neonatal with a discharge diagnosis of sepsis. INTERVENTIONS: None. MEASUREMENTS AND MAIN RESULTS: Of the 19,113 pediatric admissions with sepsis (6,300 [33%] previously healthy and 12,813 [67%] with a chronic disease), 31% received mechanical ventilation, 19% had shock, and 588 (3.1%) died during their hospitalization. Among all admissions, 8,204 (42.9%) had a bacterial or fungal pathogen identified. S. aureus was the most common pathogen identified in previously healthy patients (n = 593, 9.4%) and those with any chronic disease (n = 1,430, 11.1%). Methicillin-resistant S. aureus, P. aeruginosa, C. difficile, and fungal infections all had high prevalence in specific chronic diseases associated with frequent contact with the healthcare system, early surgery, indwelling devices, or immunosuppression. CONCLUSIONS: In this nationally representative administrative database, the most common identified pathogen was S. aureus in previously healthy and chronically ill children. In addition, a high proportion of children with sepsis and select chronic diseases had infections with methicillin-resistant S. aureus, fungal infections, Pseudomonas infections, and C. difficile. Clinicians caring for pediatric patients should consider coverage of these organisms when administering empiric antimicrobials for sepsis.

Controversies in Perioperative Antimicrobial Prophylaxis.

Although clinical guidelines for antibiotic prophylaxis across a wide array of surgical procedures have been proposed by multidisciplinary groups of physicians and pharmacists, clinicians often deviate from recommendations. This is particularly true when recommendations are based on weak data or expert opinion. The goal of this review is to highlight certain common but controversial topics in perioperative prophylaxis and to focus on the data that does exist for the recommendations being made.

Improved Antibiotic Prescribing within a Veterans Affairs Primary Care System through a Multifaceted Intervention Centered on Peer Comparison of Overall Antibiotic Prescribing Rates.

Reducing inappropriate outpatient antibiotic use is an important national goal. Limited data exist on targeted education and peer comparison of overall antibiotic prescribing rates as an antimicrobial stewardship strategy. Primary care professionals (PCPs) from all seven clinics within our health care system were offered an education session, followed by monthly e-mails with their antibiotic prescribing rate, peer prescribing rates, and a system target. A pre-post analysis was conducted to compare prescribing rates during the intervention period (January to June 2017) to a seasonal baseline (January to June 2016) using a regression model. A random sample of prescriptions was reviewed for adherence to consensus guidelines. Educational sessions were attended by 68.5% (50/73) of PCPs. From the baseline to the intervention period, the mean rate of monthly antibiotic prescriptions declined from 76.9 to 49.5 per 1,000 office visits (35.6% reduction [P < 0.001]). Among reviewed cases, unnecessary antibiotic prescribing declined (58.8% [80/136] versus 38.9% [70/180]; 33.9% reduction [P = 0.0006]), and the rate of optimally prescribed antibiotics increased (19.9% [27/136] versus 30% [54/180]; 50.8% increase [P = 0.05]). If an antibiotic was indicated, there were no significant differences in prescribing of guideline-discordant agents (21.4% [12/56] versus 19.1% [21/110] [P = 0.8]) or guideline-concordant agents for a guideline-discordant duration (38.6% [17/44] versus 39.3% [35/89] [P = 1]). There were significant reductions in azithromycin and fluoroquinolone prescriptions (50.9% and 59.4% [P values of <0.001], respectively), but most prescriptions for these agents in the intervention period remained inappropriate. Initial education followed by monthly peer comparison of overall antibiotic prescribing rates reduced total and unnecessary antibiotic prescribing in primary care clinics.

Prevalence of Inappropriate Antibiotic Prescribing in Primary Care Clinics within a Veterans Affairs Health Care System.

Data are needed from outpatient settings to better inform antimicrobial stewardship. In this study, a random sample of outpatient antibiotic prescriptions by primary care providers (PCPs) at our health care system was reviewed and compared to consensus guidelines. Over 12 months, 3,880 acute antibiotic prescriptions were written by 76 PCPs caring for 40,734 patients (median panel, 600 patients; range, 33 to 1,547). PCPs ordered a median of 84 antibiotic prescriptions per 1,000 patients per year. Azithromycin (25.8%), amoxicillin-clavulanate (13.3%), doxycycline (12.4%), amoxicillin (11%), fluoroquinolones (11%), and trimethoprim-sulfamethoxazole (10.6%) were prescribed most commonly. Medical records corresponding to 300 prescriptions from 59 PCPs were analyzed in depth. The most common indications for these prescriptions were acute respiratory tract infection (28.3%), urinary tract infection (23%), skin and soft tissue infection (15.7%), and chronic obstructive pulmonary disease (COPD) exacerbation (6.3%). In 5.7% of cases, no reason for the prescription was listed. No antibiotic was indicated in 49.7% of cases. In 12.3% of cases, an antibiotic was indicated, but the prescribed agent was guideline discordant. In another 14% of cases, a guideline-concordant antibiotic was given for a guideline-discordant duration. Therefore, 76% of reviewed prescriptions were inappropriate. Ciprofloxacin and azithromycin were most likely to be prescribed inappropriately. A non-face-to-face encounter prompted 34% of prescriptions. The condition for which an antibiotic was prescribed was not listed in primary or secondary diagnosis codes in 54.5% of clinic visits. In conclusion, there is an enormous opportunity to reduce inappropriate outpatient antibiotic prescriptions.

Water Cultures Are More Sensitive Than Swab Cultures for the Detection of Environmental Legionella.

Water cultures were significantly more sensitive than concurrently collected swab cultures (n=2,147 each) in detecting Legionella pneumophila within a Veterans Affairs healthcare system. Sensitivity for water versus swab cultures was 90% versus 30% overall, 83% versus 48% during a nosocomial Legionnaires' disease outbreak, and 93% versus 22% post outbreak. Infect Control Hosp Epidemiol 2018;39:108-110.