A quality-improvement approach to urgent-care antibiotic stewardship for respiratory tract infections during the COVID-19 pandemic: Lessons learned.

OBJECTIVE: We investigated a decrease in antibiotic prescribing for respiratory illnesses in 2 academic urgent-care clinics during the coronavirus disease 2019 (COVID-19) pandemic using semistructured clinician interviews. METHODS: We conducted a quality-improvement project from November 2020 to May 2021. We investigated provider antibiotic decision making using a mixed-methods explanatory design including interviews. We analyzed transcripts using a thematic framework approach to identify emergent themes. Our performance measure was antibiotic prescribing rate (APR) for encounters with respiratory diagnosis billing codes. We extracted billing and prescribing data from the electronic medical record and assessed differences using run charts, p charts and generalized linear regression. RESULTS: We observed significant reductions in the APR early during the COVID-19 pandemic (relative risk [RR], 0.20; 95% confidence interval [CI], 0.17-0.25), which was maintained over the study period (P < .001). The average APRs were 14% before the COVID-19 pandemic, 4% during the QI project, and 7% after the project. All providers prescribed less antibiotics for respiratory encounters during COVID-19, but only 25% felt their practice had changed. Themes from provider interviews included changing patient expectations and provider approach to respiratory encounters during COVID-19, the impact of increased telemedicine encounters, and the changing epidemiology of non-COVID-19 respiratory infections. CONCLUSIONS: Our findings suggest that the decrease in APR was likely multifactorial. The average APR decreased significantly during the pandemic. Although the APR was slightly higher after the QI project, it did not reach prepandemic levels. Future studies should explore how these factors, including changing patient expectations, can be leveraged to improve urgent-care antibiotic stewardship.

A Case of Postoperative Methicillin-Resistant Staphylococcus aureus Enterocolitis in an 81-Year-Old Man and Review of the Literature.

BACKGROUND Nosocomial diarrhea affects 12% to 32% of hospitalized patients. Before the development of the Clostridium difficile cytotoxin assay in the 1970s, Staphylococcus aureus was frequently implicated as a cause of hospital-acquired infectious colitis, particularly in association with recent antibiotic therapy or abdominal surgery. Decreased utilization of stool culture has reduced the recognition of S. aureus as a rare, but historically important, cause of enterocolitis. CASE REPORT An 81-year-old man with no recent history of travel, exposure to potential infectious sources (e.g., sick contacts, animals, undercooked foods), or antibiotic or proton-pump inhibitor use was admitted for a Whipple procedure (expanded intraoperatively with total pancreatectomy, splenectomy, and portal vein resection) for stage III pancreatic adenocarcinoma. On postoperative day (POD) 5, the patient developed large-volume watery diarrhea that did not improve with tube feeding cessation and oral pancreatic enzyme replacement. He subsequently became clinically septic on POD10, and workup revealed severe radiographic sigmoid and rectal colitis and methicillin-resistant S. aureus (MRSA) bacteremia. Polymerase chain reaction testing for C. difficile was negative twice (POD5 and POD12). He was diagnosed with MRSA proctocolitis and improved with initiation of oral and intravenous vancomycin. CONCLUSIONS We describe a case of staphylococcal enterocolitis, a previously common cause of nosocomial diarrhea that has become increasingly underappreciated since the advent of culture-independent stool testing for C. difficile. Increased awareness of this entity, especially when Clostridium assays are negative, may guide more effective treatment of hospital-acquired infection.

Antimicrobial resistance in sexually transmitted infections.

RATIONALE FOR REVIEW: International travel facilitates the spread of drug-resistant infections, including sexually transmitted infections (STIs). In 2016, the World Health Organization highlighted the global burden of 'curable' STIs, estimating 376 million new infections of gonorrhoea, chlamydia, syphilis and trichomoniasis annually, with considerable geographic variation in both the burden of disease and prevalence of resistance. Travelers' risk of contracting and transmitting drug-resistant STIs depends in part on their geographic exposure. In this review, we describe the epidemiology of antimicrobial resistance (AMR) and the management of these four common STIs and Mycoplasma genitalium, an increasingly recognized cause of non-gonococcal urethritis. KEY FINDINGS: Multi-drug and extensively drug resistant gonorrhoea strains have been associated with international spread, particularly in travelers returning from Southeast Asia. Chlamydia is the most common bacterial STI worldwide. Although in vitro resistance has been reported, surveillance data suggest that clinically significant resistance to macrolides and tetracyclines is rare. Macrolide resistance in syphilis is now endemic in much of the world but there is no documented penicillin resistance, which remains first-line therapy. Trichomoniasis is the most common non-viral STI worldwide. Although clinical failure after treatment occurs, resistance to metronidazole is thought to be uncommon. Mycoplasma genitalium exhibits intrinsic resistance to many antibiotics, and the prevalence of resistance to both first- and second-line regimens (macrolides and fluoroquinolones) is increasing worldwide, with limited alternative therapeutic options. RECOMMENDATIONS: International travelers are at risk for acquiring resistant STIs with limited therapeutic options. Improved diagnostics are urgently needed to improve AMR surveillance and the management of infected patients. As no vaccinations are currently available for these STIs, and pre-exposure prophylaxis is an area of active study with limited data, condom use is critical for prevention. Travel medicine providers should incorporate STI risk reduction counselling, with an emphasis on condom use, into the routine pre-travel consultation.

Comprehensive Guidance for Antibiotic Dosing in Obese Adults.

Physiologic alterations seen in obesity commonly impact the pharmacokinetics (PK) and pharmacodynamics (PD) of antibiotics and may result in suboptimal dosing in this expanding but understudied population. Much of the published clinical and PK evidence to date consists of small patient populations and are retrospective with, not infrequently, heterogeneous results that in some cases are contradictory. In the last 10 years, additional antimicrobial PK/PD and clinical data encompassing prolonged infusion strategies and examination of critically ill populations have emerged to inform antimicrobial dosing in obesity. In this narrative review, we critically review literature on dosing, PK, and possible dosing strategies in obese adults. We searched PubMed, Scopus, and the Cochrane Library using Medical Subject Headings including anti-infectives, specific antimicrobial names, obese, pharmacokinetics, and others. We reviewed articles, cross-referenced select cited references, and when applicable, referenced drug databases and package inserts to develop dosing recommendations. We provide an overall critical review of the available data regarding PK and dosing issues including dosing recommendations in both critically ill and noncritically ill patients with significant obesity. We developed dosing recommendations for 34 antimicrobials based on 121 articles of the 2336 identified by the search strategy. Although 11 of these do not appear to require dose adjustment, obesity-specific dosing guidance is provided for the remaining 23 antimicrobials. Additional studies are needed to better understand and resolve discrepant published results regarding the PK of antibiotics to establish optimal dosing strategies in obese adults. Alternative dosing strategies, such as extended infusions, should be considered for time-dependent antibiotics (e.g., ß-lactams) in obese patients to achieve PD targets reliably. Therapeutic drug monitoring across the spectrum of antimicrobials is of increasing importance in this and other populations to ensure optimized dosing.