Clinical manifestations and microbiological features between indigenous and imported enteric fever in Taiwan, 2010-2020.

Previous studies had showed that indigenous clones of Salmonella Typhi and S. Paratyphi were originally imported from other countries in Taiwan. We presented the clinical manifestations and laboratory findings of indigenous and imported enteric fever cases in Taiwan in the current decade. We retrospectively reviewed typhoid and paratyphoid fever cases in two medical centers of Chang Gung Memorial Hospitals in 2010-2020. A total of 37 enteric fever cases including 24 typhoid fever and 13 paratyphoid fever were recorded. There were 20 indigenous cases, 16 imported cases, and one indetermined case. Splenomegaly and hepatitis were more frequent in typhoid fever than in paratyphoid fever (P < 0.05). Imported cases had more ciprofloxacin non-susceptibility rate (8/16, 50.0%) than indigenous cases (2/20, 10%). Indigenous ciprofloxacin non-susceptible S. Typhi isolates were found in 2018. One indigenous S. Paratyphi B isolate was multi-drug resistant (MDR) to chloramphenicol, ampicillin, and trimethoprim/sulfamethoxazole.

Correction: Bacterial detection and identification from human synovial fluids on an integrated microfluidic system.

Correction for 'Bacterial detection and identification from human synovial fluids on an integrated microfluidic system' by Ting-Hang Liu et al., Analyst, 2019, 144, 1210-1222.

Bacterial detection and identification from human synovial fluids on an integrated microfluidic system.

Periprosthetic joint infections (PJIs) are among the most severe complications emerging from prosthetic joint replacement surgeries. In order to possess a rapid means of diagnosing PJIs, an integrated microfluidic system was developed herein for detecting and identifying bacteria in human synovial fluid (HSF). The entire molecular diagnostic process, including (1) sample treatment, (2) bacterial isolation, (3) bacterial lysis, (4) nucleic acid amplification (via polymerase chain reaction (PCR)), and (5) optical detection, could be automated on a single chip. First, N-acetyl-l-cysteine was used to decrease the viscosity of HSF samples and consequently enhance bacterial isolation with vancomycin-coated nano-magnetic beads. Then, a universal 16S ribosomal ribonucleic acid PCR primer set and four species-specific primer sets were used for PCR-based detection and identification of four common bacteria previously associated with PJIs, including Staphylococcus aureus, methicillin-resistant S. aureus, Escherichia coli, and Acinetobacter baumannii. With this approach, the limit of detection was as low as 100 colony forming units (CFUs) per milliliter (or 20 CFUs per reaction), which is suitable for clinical diagnostics and for making informed decisions regarding post-operative antibiotic administration. More importantly, bacterial detection and identification data could be acquired within 90 minutes, representing a significant improvement over traditional culture-based methods (3-7 days). The developed microfluidic system may therefore serve as a promising tool for rapid diagnosis of PJIs.