[Actinomycosic mycetoma of the foot in Morocco due to Actinomycetes viscosus]. / Mycétome actinomycosique du pied à Actinomycetes viscosus au Maroc.

We present the case of an actinomycotic mycetoma of the foot due to Actinomycetes viscosus. It evolved for nine years on the foot of a 26-year-old patient from a rural environment: Douar Inezgane (city in southern Morocco). Bacteriological study of the skin and grains confirmed the diagnosis. It showed positive bacilli on direct examination and on Gram staining and in positive culture. Histological study showed a polymorphous granulomatous inflammation without signs of malignancy with actinomycotic grains. Then we retained the diagnosis of primary cutaneous actinomycosis without visceral locations. The treatment was based on antibiotics: penicillin G by intravenous infusion for five weeks, relayed orally by amoxicillin associated with trimethoprim-sulfamethoxazole for long periods. After six months of treatment, we observed a favorable outcome with reduction of the swelling, nodules, lymphadenopathy, fistula's number and extension of time of issue of grains. The current follow up is 15 months. The primary cutaneous actinomycosis is still relevant in Morocco.

[Group A streptococcal meningitis]. / Meningites à streptocoque du groupe A.

An increased incidence and severity of invasive group A streptococcus (GAS) infections over the past decade have been reported by several authors, but GAS remains an uncommon cause of bacterial meningitis. The aim of this study was to describe and analyze the clinical and biological data of GAS meningitis by reporting 10 new cases of pediatric GAS meningitis and making a literature review. The mean age of patients, seven girls and three boys, was 3 years. There was a history of preexisting or concomitant community-acquired infection in five patients over 10. The outcome was fatal in two cases. All patients received an initial empirical antimicrobial therapy with a third generation cephalosporin switched in six cases to amoxicillin. The prognosis for this type of streptococcal meningitis is usually good, but death may occur even in children without any identified risk factor for severe infection.

Epidemiological profile of invasive bacterial diseases in children in Casablanca, Morocco: antimicrobial susceptibilities and serotype distribution.

The aim of this prospective study in Morocco was to investigate the causes of invasive bacterial diseases in children in order to inform antibiotic therapy and vaccine choices. Of 238 children aged < or = 5 years admitted to the Children's Hospital of Casablanca for invasive diseases over a 12-month period, 185 were diagnosed with bacterial infection: 76 had chest-X-ray-confirmed pneumonia, 59 had meningitis and 50 had sepsis. Streptococcus pneumoniae was the most common pathogen identified (n = 24), followed by Neisseria meningitidis (n = 18, all group B) and Haemophilus influenzae (n = 11). The rate of penicillin non-susceptibility was 62.5% among Str. pneumoniae isolates and 11.1% among N. meningitidis and all isolates were ceftriaxone-susceptible. Of the 11 H. influenzae isolates, only 1 produced a beta-lactamase. The 5 predominant Str. pneumoniae serotypes were 19F, 14, 23F, 6B and 19A and the theoretical coverage of the 7, 10 and 13-valent pneumococcal conjugate vaccines was 60%, 78% and 91% respectively.

Epidemiological profile of invasive bacterial diseases in children in Casablanca, Morocco: antimicrobial susceptibilities and serotype distribution

The aim of this prospective study in Morocco was to investigate the causes of invasive bacterial diseases in children in order to inform antibiotic therapy and vaccine choices. Of 238 children aged </= 5 years admitted to the Children's Hospital of Casablanca for invasive diseases over a 12-month period, 185 were diagnosed with bacterial infection: 76 had chest-X-ray-confirmed pneumonia, 59 had meningitis and 50 had sepsis. Streptococcus pneumonia was the most common pathogen identified [n= 24], followed by Neisseria meningitides [n= 18, all group B] and Haemophilus influenza [n= 11]. The rate of penicillin non-susceptibility was 62.5% among Str. pneumoniae isolates and 11.1% among N. meningitidisand all isolates were ceftriaxone-susceptible. Of the 11 H. influenzae isolates, only 1 produced a beta-lactamase. The 5 predominant Str. pneumoniaeserotypes were 19F, 14, 23F, 6B and 19A and the theoretical coverage of the 7, 10 and 13-valent pneumococcal conjugate vaccines was 60%, 78% and 91% respectively

[Prevalence and in vitro antimicrobial susceptibility patterns of Acinetobacter baumannii strains in a Moroccan university hospital]. / Prévalence et état de sensibilité aux antibiotiques d'Acinetobacter baumannii dans un CHU marocain.

OBJECTIVE: The aim of this study was to identify the clinical presentations and the current antimicrobial susceptibility of Acinetobacter baumannii. RESULTS: We identified 754 strains especially from intensive care units (50.53%) between January 2003 and December 2005. Bronchial swabs and blood culture were prevalent. High-level resistance to betalactamines was noted: 91% to cefotaxime, 50.3% to ceftazidime, and 42.6% to imipenem. Aminoside resistance varied from 17.9% for netilmicine to 72.1% for gentamycin. The resistance rate to ciprofloxacine was 65.8%, and to trimethoprime-sulfamethoxazole 75.8%. In intensive care units, the antimicrobial resistance rate of A. baumannii was higher (p<0.05). CONCLUSION: The resistance of A. baumannii to current antibiotics is alarming especially in intensive care units. An effective strategy against nosocomial infection is still necessary.

[Use of multilocus sequence typing and pulsed-field gel electrophoresis for the study of serogroup B Neisseria meningitidis isolates from Casablanca (Morocco)]. / Etude de souches de Neisseria meningitidis sérogroupe B isolées à Casablanca par multilocus sequence typing et électrophorèse en champ pulsé.

A previous study showed that B:4:P1.15 was the most frequent phenotype of Neisseria meningitidis isolated in Casablanca (Morocco). To determine if there was an epidemic clone, MLST and PFGE were used to compare 13 B:4:P1.15 strains isolated from September 1999 to December 2000. MLST showed 4 Sequence Types (ST): ST-33 was the most frequent ST (9/13 strains) and 4 strains belonged to 3 newly described STs. Twelve stains belonged to ST-32 complex, and one strain presenting a new ST (ST-2502) did not belong to any known ST complex. The analysis by PFGE showed that the strains were subdivided into 7 clusters, and that there was no epidemic clone. MLST is useful for long-term epidemiological studies on N. meningitidis strains from varied geographical origins. PFGE seemed to be well adapted to the comparison of a small number of strains isolated during a short period within a defined community.

[Prevalence of bacterial contamination of standard platelet units: prospective study]. / Prévalence de la contamination bactérienne dans les unités plaquettaires standards: étude prospective.

BACKGROUND: Platelet concentrates contaminated with bacteria are a main source of transfusion-associated sepsis. Several studies have reported a very wide incidence (0-10%) of contamination. The aim of this study is to assess the prevalence of bacterial contamination of standard platelet units at the regional blood transfusion center in Casablanca. STUDY DESIGN AND METHODS: During 15.5 months, 3,458 platelet concentrates (PCs) were analysed. The plasma from the bag and the tube was homogenised. One-fifth of the tube contents were inoculated every day for five days in two tubes containing 2.5 mL of Tryptic soy broth. One tube was incubated at room temperature and the other at 37 degrees C for 24 hours. The bacteria were identified by standard procedures. RESULTS: Twenty-five (0.72%) of 3,458 platelet bags were contaminated. Twenty-two bacteria (88%) were found in the platelet bags stored three days or more, of which 14 (56%) were Staphylococci coagulase negative, two Staphylococcus aureus, one alpha-haemolytic Streptococcus, four bacillus cereus, one Enterobacter cloacae, one Escherichia Coli and two Xanthomonas maltophilia. CONCLUSION: The incidence reported in this series is higher than that reported by most authors.

Characterization of extended-spectrum beta-lactamase-producing Salmonella typhimurium by phenotypic and genotypic typing methods.

During 1994, 10 isolates of extended-spectrum beta-lactamase-producing Salmonella typhimurium were recovered from children transferred to our hospital from two different centers. Two additional isolates were recovered from two nurses from one of these centers. The aim of this study was to determine if there is any relationship between these isolates. The characterization was done by phenotypic and genotypic methods: biotyping, phage typing, antibiotic susceptibility pattern determination, plasmid analysis, ribotyping (by the four endonucleases EcoRI, SmaI, BglII, and PvuII), pulsed-field gel electrophoresis (PFGE) of genome macrorestriction patterns with XbaI, and randomly amplified polymorphic DNA (RAPD) pattern determination (with the three primers 217 d2, B1, and A3). The same biotype, the same serotype, and an identical antibiotype were found. All isolates were resistant to oxyimino-beta-lactams, gentamicin, tobramycin, and sulfamethoxazole-trimethoprim. All isolates showed an indistinguishable pattern by ribotyping and very similar patterns by PFGE and RAPD. The overall results indicated the spread of a closely related strain of S. typhimurium in children and nurses.

[Typing of extended-spectrum beta-lactamase-producing Salmonella typhimurium strains isolated in a pediatric unit]. / Typage de souches de Salmonella typhimurium poductrices de bêta-lactamase à spectre élargi isolées dans une unité pédiatrique.

Extended-spectrum b-lactamases (ESBLs) derive mainly from TEM and SHV b-lactamases. These enzymes confer resistance to all oxyimino cephalosporins and monobactams except cephamycins and carbapems. ESBLs are often encoded by large plasmids that carry resistance determinants to multiple antibiotics and spread among the members of the Enterobacteriaceae. Since the first outbreak of Klebsiella pneumoniae expressing an extended-spectrum beta-lactamase reported in 1984, nosocomial infections due to Enterobacteriaceae species which produce ESBLs have been generally recovered from patients hospitalized in intensive care units. The most frequently isolated ESBL-producing strains belong to the genus Klebsiella, Escherichia, Enterobacter and Proteus; ESBLs are rarely associated with the genus Salmonella. The first Salmonella were detected in France in 1984 (Salmonella typhimurium), in Tunisia in 1988 (Salmonella wien) and in Argentina in 1991 (Salmonella typhimurium). In 1994, 10 isolates of Salmonella typhimurium expressing an extended-spectrum beta-lactamase were isolated for the first time from 10 children hospitalized in a pediatric unit of the hospital Ibn-Rochd, Casablanca. Previous study showed that all isolates belonged the same serotype, and biotype, and showed a resistance to oxyimino beta-lactams, gentamycin, tobramycin and trimethoprim-sulfamethoxazole but remained susceptible to tetracycline, chloramphenicol and quinolones. Oxyimino beta-lactams resistance determinant of all strains of Salmonella typhimurium was transferred by conjugation to Escherichia coli; Resistance to gentamycin and trimethoprim-sulfamethoxazole was also cotransferred. In this study, we characterized the relationship between all isolates by comparing plasmid profiles and patterns of proteins because there appear to be the more effective method for evaluating epidemiologic relationship between Salmonella species, and the protein profiles method has been used for many bacterial species. These two methods have the advantages of speed and simplicity. All isolates presented the same plasmid pattern characterised by three plasmids and the same pattern of proteins composed of 36 bands. We concluded by combining results that this outbreak involved the spread of the same strain of Salmonella typhimurium between the ten children. As this type of resistance is easily transferred by these isolates to other bacterial species, the major risk would be its transfer to Salmonella typhi.

Prospective randomized comparative trial of pefloxacin versus cotrimoxazole in the treatment of typhoid fever in adults.

Pefloxacin, which has been shown to have a high in vitro activity against Salmonella spp., was compared to cotrimoxazole in the treatment of typhoid fever in adults. In a prospective, randomized trial, 42 patients with bacteriologically documented typhoid fever received either 400 mg pefloxacin b.i.d. or 160/800 mg cotrimoxazole b.i.d. Duration of treatment was 14 days in both groups. All patients were cured without experiencing a relapse or becoming a salmonella carrier. Apyrexia and resolution of digestive and neurological symptoms were obtained in a significantly shorter time with pefloxacin than with cotrimoxazole. Pefloxacin was well tolerated and more effective than cotrimoxazole in the treatment of typhoid fever.

[Significance of the determination of lactic acid in the cerebrospinal fluid for the differential diagnosis of meningitis]. / Intérêt du dosage d'acide lactique dans le liquide céphalorachidien pour le diagnostic différentiel des méningites.

Measurement of cerebrospinal fluid lactic acid by an enzymatic test has been evaluated in 164 patients. The upper limit of normal CSF lactate was 300 mg/l. The CSF lactate level is useful for differential diagnosis between partially treated pyogenic meningitis and tuberculous meningitis. The increase of CSF lactate is not specific for meningitis and must be interpreted taking into account the clinical situation.

[Oral amoxicillin for purulent meningitis in the child: early relief and reduction in symptoms]. / Amoxicilline orale dans les Méningites purulentes de l'enfant: relais précoce et réduction de la posologie.

The pharmacokinetics of amoxycillin in the CSF following intravenous and oral administration at a 150 mg/kg per day or 250 mg/kg per day dosage in the treatment of purulent meningitis is described. A significant correlation between meningeal inflammation and CSF levels of amoxycillin were observed, including a correlation between the initial neurological state and the outcome of the illness. Despite the early introduction of oral therapy and the reduction in dosage following meningeal and pneumococcal meningitis, no treatment failures could be attributed to this therapeutic regime. Such a treatment schedule, moreover, reduces the risk of superinfection in hospital as well as the cost of treatment and aids the comfort to the patient.

[Etiological evaluation of acute diarrhea in children hospitalized in Casablanca]. / Bilan étiologique des diarrhées aiguës de l'enfant hospitalisé à Casablanca.

A prospective study of pediatric diarrhea was conducted in Casablanca. An etiologic agent was found in 67,8% of 87 ill participants. Rotavirus was the most common cause while Campylobacter jejuni, reported as Rotavirus for the first time in Morocco, was isolated in 11% of the patients.