Resistant nosocomial enterococcal infections

Resistant Nosocomial Enterococcal Infections

Enterococcus faecalis, formerly classified as Streptococcus faecalis, belongs to Lancefield group D and is frequently isolated from nosocomial infections. Of the nosocomial infections reported to the Centers for Disease Control (CDC) in its National Nosocomial Infection Survey (NNIS), enterococci were isolated from 11% of cases. Frequently, E. faecalis is recovered as one of several kinds of ba...

For nosocomial vancomycin-resistant enterococcal infections: the ounce of prevention or the pound of cure?

This issue of the journal contains an important article by Perencevich et al. [1] describing the results of a mathematical model evaluating various measures for controlling the spread of vancomycin-resistant enterococci (VRE) among intensive care unit (ICU) patients. It concludes that active surveillance cultures and contact precautions for all colonized patients provide significantly better co...

Management of multidrug-resistant enterococcal infections.

Enterococci are organisms with a remarkable ability to adapt to the environment and acquire antibiotic resistance determinants. The evolution of antimicrobial resistance in these organisms poses enormous challenges for clinicians when faced with patients affected with severe infections. The increased prevalence and dissemination of multidrug-resistant Enterococcus faecium worldwide has resulted...

Vancomycin-resistant enterococcal infections: epidemiology, clinical manifestations, and optimal management

Since its discovery in England and France in 1986, vancomycin-resistant Enterococcus has increasingly become a major nosocomial pathogen worldwide. Enterococci are prolific colonizers, with tremendous genome plasticity and a propensity for persistence in hospital environments, allowing for increased transmission and the dissemination of resistance elements. Infections typically present in immun...

Daptomycin for the treatment of vancomycin-resistant enterococcal infections.