Monotherapy Antibiotic Prophylaxis of Lower Extremity Long Bone Type III Open Fractures.

Gustilo type III open fractures involve extensive soft tissue damage and wound contamination that pose significant infection risks. The historical standard for antibiotic prophylaxis has been cefazolin and gentamicin. We conducted a retrospective cohort study of lower extremity type III open fractures treated with ceftriaxone alone for prophylaxis. Eighty-six patients were identified. Nearly all (98%) were managed with appropriate antibiotics, but only 55 (64%) received prophylaxis within 1 hour. Overall, there were 12 infections. This infection rate was not statistically different than the reported literature (14% vs 19%, P = .20). The infection rate between those who received antibiotics within 1 hour was not statistically different from those who got it beyond 1 hour (15% vs 13%, P = .98). In conclusion, the use of ceftriaxone as monotherapy for antibiotic prophylaxis in lower extremity type III open fractures is not statistically different than the use of historic prophylactic regimens.

Admission Medication Reconciliation Discrepancies in Trauma Patients: Consistent Nursing Care May Not Be the Answer.

Inadvertent medication reconciliation discrepancies are common among trauma patient populations. We conducted a prospective study at a level 1 trauma center to assess incidence of inadvertent medication reconciliation discrepancies following decreased reliance on short-term nursing staff. Patients and independent sources were interviewed for home medication lists and compared to admission medication reconciliation (AMR) lists. Of the 108 patients included, 37 patients (34%) never received an AMR. Of the 71 patients that had a completed AMR, 42 patients (59%) had one or more errors, with total 154 errors across all patients, for a rate of 3.7 per patient with any discrepancy. Patients taking ≥ 5 medications were significantly more likely to have an incomplete or inaccurate AMR than those taking <5 medications (89% vs 41%, P < .0001). Decreased reliance on short-term nursing staff did not decrease inadvertent admission medication reconciliation discrepancies. Additional interventions to decrease risk of medication administration errors are needed.

Characterization of Neospora caninum protease, NcSUB1 (NC-P65), with rabbit anti-N54.

NcSUB1 (formerly known as NC-p65) is the first molecularly described proteolytic enzyme of the intracellular protozoan parasite Neospora caninum. This report describes the characterization of a rabbit anti-N54, which is an antiserum generated against an internal fragment of NcSUB1 (amino acids 649-783). In immunofluorescence studies rabbit and-N54 labeled the apical end of the fixed parasite. By immuno-gold electron microscopy, the antibody bound primarily to the microneme organelles of the parasite. Analysis of secreted parasitic proteins indicated that a protein of molecular weight 65 kDa (reduced) or 55 kDa (nonreduced) was recognized bythe antibody. The same secreted proteins were affinity purified with rabbit anti-N54-coupled resins and were shown to contain major proteolytic activity by zymography. Thus, rabbit anti-N54 is the first antibody developed for N. caninum that binds to themicroneme proteins and recognizes a major secreted enzyme.