Antibiotic Duo Effective Against Drug-Resistant Infections: Study
This week, a phase 3 clinical trial showed aztreonam-avibactam might be treatment option for patients facing multidrug-resistant infections. Meanwhile, research shows that penicillin allergies in nursing homes residents contribute to over prescription of broad spectrum antibiotics, adding to antimicrobial resistance.
CIDRAP:
Phase 3 Data Support Use Of Combination Antibiotic For Multidrug-Resistant Infections
An international team of investigators this week published phase 3 clinical trial data supporting aztreonam-avibactam as a potential therapeutic option for patients with serious gram-negative bacterial infections with limited treatment options. ... It was approved in April by the European Medicines Agency based on the results of two phase 3 clinical trials that evaluated its efficacy in treating several types of multidrug-resistant infections. (Dall, 10/9)
CIDRAP:
Penicillin Allergies Pose Problem For Nursing Home Residents, Study Suggests
A study of long-term care (LTC) facilities in Massachusetts found that residents with a documented penicillin allergy were 95% less likely to receive beta-lactam antibiotics, researchers reported yesterday in Antimicrobial Stewardship & Healthcare Epidemiology. ... Previous research has shown that penicillin allergy labels are frequently inaccurate and can result in the selection of broader-spectrum antibiotics, which contribute to antimicrobial resistance and have an increased risk of side effects. (Dall, 10/9)
In research relating to covid —
CIDRAP:
Data: COVID Reinfection In Unvaccinated More Severe Than Breakthrough Infections
The rate of hospitalization and death is significantly higher after COVID-19 reinfection among unvaccinated US veterans than after breakthrough infection among never-infected vaccine recipients, according to an analysis published yesterday in The Journal of Infectious Diseases. ... The median age was 56 years, 91% were men, and 80% were White. (Van Beusekom, 10/9)
The Hill:
COVID-19 Linked To Increased Risk Of Cardiac Events: Study
COVID-19 could increase the risk of major cardiac events, like strokes and heart attacks, according to a study from the Keck School of Medicine of University of Southern California; the University of California, Los Angeles; and Cleveland Clinic released Wednesday. The findings revealed individuals with A, B and AB blood types that contracted a severe version of COVID-19 are more likely to have future heart problems than people with an O blood type who had a severe version of COVID-19. (Fields, 10/9)
In other research news —
The Washington Post:
Nobel Prize In Physics Awarded To John Hopfield, Geoffrey Hinton For Machine Learning
The Nobel Prize in physics was awarded Tuesday to two pioneering scientists who laid the groundwork for the revolutionary advances in artificial intelligence, and one of the new laureates wasted no time in warning that those advances potentially pose risks to society. “We have no experience with what it’s like to have things smarter than us,” Geoffrey Hinton of the University of Toronto said minutes after the announcement that he and John Hopfield of Princeton University had been awarded the physics prize by the Royal Swedish Academy of Sciences. (Achenbach, Ortega and Tiku, 10/8)
