From the micro to the macro to improve health: microorganism ecology and society in teaching infectious disease epidemiology

Glucose Oxidase-Integrated Metal-Polyphenolic Network as a Microenvironment-Activated Cascade Nanozyme for Hyperglycemic Wound Disinfection

The high systemic blood glucose concentration of hyperglycemic wound microenvironment (WME) severely impedes the disinfection and healing of infected skin wounds. Herein, a WME-activated smart natural product, integrated GOx-GA-Fe nanozyme (GGFzyme), is engineered, which combines a nanozyme and natural enzyme to promote reactive oxygen species (ROS) generation in situ for hyperglycemic wound disinfection. GGFzyme can consume a high concentration of glucose in hyperglycemia wounds and generate H₂O₂. The conversion of glucose into gluconic acid not avails starvation treatment but reduces the pH of WME to elevate the catalytic activities of both the nanozyme (GA-Fe) and natural enzyme (GOx). And H₂O₂ is then high efficiently catalyzed into ^•OH and O₂^•- in situ to combat pathogenic bacteria and promote wound disinfection. The high catalytic antibacterial capacity and superior biosafety, combined with beneficial WME modulation, demonstrate that GGFzyme is a promising therapeutic agent for hyperglycemic wounds.

Exposure to Chlamydia trachomatis Infection in Individuals Who Are Newly Diagnosed with HIV and Antiretroviral-Naïve from Belém, Northern Brazil

Chlamydia trachomatis is one of the most prevalent sexually transmitted bacteria worldwide and may increase the risk of other sexually transmitted infections (STIs) including the human immunodeficiency virus (HIV). This study describes the seroprevalence of C. trachomatis infection among antiretroviral-naïve patients who are newly diagnosed with HIV in the city of Belém, Pará, in the Amazon region of Brazil. A cross-sectional study was carried out between January 2018 and January 2019 in 141 people living with HIV/AIDS (PLHA) who were followed up in a specialized unit of the public health network of Pará. The investigation of IgG antibodies against C. trachomatis was performed by enzyme immunoassay. Sociodemographic and sexual behavior information were obtained through a questionnaire. The prevalence of IgG anti-C. trachomatis antibodies was 64.8% (92/141). The majority of individuals were young, heterosexual, single men who did not use condoms during sexual intercourse and had no history of STIs. No significant differences were found when comparing any clinical or demographic data between groups. Our results demonstrated a high rate of exposure to C. trachomatis in newly diagnosed HIV-infected individuals in the Amazon region of Brazil, and all PLHA should be screened for C. trachomatis to decrease transmission of the bacteria and prevent the clinical manifestations of chronic infection.

Current Status of Probiotics as Supplements in the Prevention and Treatment of Infectious Diseases

Probiotics play an important role against infectious pathogens via their effects on the epithelium, the production of antimicrobial compounds, and competitive exclusion. Administration of probiotic supplements may reduce the risk of infectious diseases and the use of antibiotics, hence contributing to a reduction or a delay of the development of multi-resistant bacteria. Infection is a constant concern for people who experience recurrent infections, and antibiotic treatment usually fails due to antibiotic resistance. Therefore, an infection can lead to severe illness and hospitalization if left untreated. A growing number of studies have demonstrated promising results for a variety of probiotic strains used to prevent or treat acute and recurrent infectious diseases, but additional standardized clinical research is needed.

Dental practice management during COVID-19 times-Now and beyond

AIM

Coronavirus disease 2019 (COVID-19) being declared a global public health emergency has become a significant challenge for all healthcare workers, including dentistry, recognised as a high-risk profession during these times. This consensus statement aims to highlight and provide guidelines necessary to be implemented for a clinical dental practice.

MATERIALS AND METHODS

A total of nine conservative Dentists and Endodontists and one Oral and Maxillofacial Surgeon; with four panelists from government dental colleges, one each from the North, South, East and West India and six resource persons from private colleges in South India, all of them being clinicians and administrators practicing dentistry since the inception of the pandemic, collaborated in this consensus statement. The consensus statement was developed through a symposium conducted on the topics; general dental practice during COVID-19 times, the importance of aerosols in clinical dental practice in the spread of COVID-19, effective standard operating protocols for clinical dental practice and Institutional settings with scientific evidence-based justifications, followed by a panel discussion with to devise mandatory protocols to be followed in clinical and institutional settings. The symposium was attended by 46 practitioners who participated in the deliberation.

RESULTS

This consensus statement provides clinicians and researchers with protocols for the dental practice, agreed upon by experts in the field. The Consensus Statement has been formulated according to the AGREE Reporting checklist for the formulation of guidelines.

CONCLUSION

The experts and panelists reached a Consensus on the protocols and guidelines for the safe clinical and institutional dental practice.

Effects of situation-background-assessment-recommendation handover combined with detail nursing intervention on patients with infections

OBJECTIVE

To analyze the nursing effects of situation-background-assessment-recommendation (SBAR) handover combined with detailed nursing intervention on patients with contagious diseases.

METHODS

A total of 106 patients with infectious diseases who were hospitalized from April 2018 to April 2020 were selected and randomly divided into a control group (n=53, SBAR handover model) and an experimental group (n=53, SBAR handover model, combined with detailed nursing intervention) based on a random number table method. The nursing quality, professional recognition of nursing staff, patients' psychological status, and the quality of life of patients between the two groups were compared. The visual analogue scale (VAS) scores, hospital stay, gastrointestinal recovery time, and complication rate of the two groups were recorded and compared at 24 h and 72 h after intervention.

RESULTS

Scores for comprehensive nursing quality of doctors, nursing managers, nursing staff, and patients in the experimental group witnessed a greater rise than before (P<0.05). Patients' social status, development prospects, mental health, and professional recognition in the experimental group garnered more of a superior outcome than the control group (P<0.05). Both the Self-Rating Anxiety Scale (SAS) score and Self-Rating Depression Scale (SDS) scores dramatically decreased after intervention (P>0.05), with lower scores in the experimental group in contrast to the control group (P<0.05). Patients in the experimental group enjoyed a better quality of life than those in the control group (P<0.05). More patients were satisfied with the nursing in the experimental group (94.34%) in comparison with the control group (81.13%) (P<0.05). The experimental group experienced better outcomes in terms of 24 h, 48 h, and 72 h VAS scores, hospital stay, and gastrointestinal recovery time, and the incidence of complications than the control group (P<0.05).

CONCLUSIONS

SBAR handover model combined with detailed nursing intervention can ease negative emotions of patients with infections, optimize their life qualities and nursing satisfaction, and enhance comprehensive nursing performance and professional recognition.

Evaluation of the Impact of the Tiny Earth Project on the Knowledge About Antibiotics of Pre-university Students in the Province of Valencia on Three Different School Years (2017-2020)

According to the World Health Organization (WHO), antibacterial resistance is a serious problem worldwide. In Spain, knowledge about the use of antibiotics is scarce, being the third country with the highest consumption of antibiotics in the world and the first in Europe. This problem is due, partly, to the abusive use of these drugs in human medicine, livestock, and agriculture. The objective of this study was to evaluate the impact that the Tiny Earth project has had on the antibiotic knowledge in pre-university students. To do this, a survey was conducted before and after the Tiny Earth project in three different school years (2017–2020) to 322 pre-university students belonging to seven schools in the province of Valencia. The survey consisted of 12 multiple-choice questions with a single valid answer. We observed 67.6% success at the beginning and 81.2% at the end. These data indicate that they correctly answered an average of 1.64 more questions after completing the project. In view of the results, we can affirm that the Tiny Earth project has contributed to an improvement in scientific knowledge and awareness of the correct use of antibiotics and the emergence of resistances by pre-university students, which could also be transmitted to their social environment, thus improving awareness global on these issues.