Random effects meta-analysis of COVID-19/S. aureus partnership in co-infection

Meta-meta-analysis of the mortality risk associated with MRSA compared to MSSA bacteraemia

Staphylococcus aureus bacteraemia (SAB) is a bloodstream infection that carries a high risk of exacerbating a diseased state and may result in an increased death rate. The aim of this study was to assess mortality risk in Methicillin Resistant Staphylococcus aureus (MRSA) bacteraemia compared to Methicillin Susceptible Staphylococcus aureus (MSSA) bacteraemia through meta-meta-analyses. The study followed PRISMA guidelines, conducting a comprehensive search in Scopus, PubMed, and Google Scholar. It included full-text systematic reviews and meta-analyses comparing MRSA vs. MSSA bacteraemia, excluding reviews without data pooling and unclear selection criteria. Validity was assessed using QUOROM and AMSTAR. Edwards' Venn diagrams were used to visualized overlaps between primary studies. Aggregated odds ratio (OR) and risk ratios with 95% confidence intervals were calculated using the random-effect model. Heterogeneity was evaluated using the Higgins I2 statistic. The study included 3 meta-analysis studies, a total of 38,159 patients, with 9,056 having MRSA bacteraemia and 29,103 having MSSA bacteraemia. Data were collected from 46 different outcome studies published between 2001 and 2022. The meta-analyses used 7 to 33 primary studies from 1990 to 2020, with no overlap. Odds ratios (ORs) ranged from 1.78 to 2.92, while relative risks (RR) ranged from 1.57 to 2.37 for the included meta-anlysis. The pooled analysis confirmed a higher risk of mortality in patients with MRSA bacteraemia (OR: 2.35, RR: 2.01, HR: 1.61) compared to MSSA bacteraemia. Heterogeneity among the studies was considerable (I2: 90-91%). The study strongly supports that most patient deaths from SAB are linked to MRSA rather than MSSA. This highlights the significant public health problem posed by SAB, with difficult and often unsuccessful treatment leading to increased mortality and high healthcare costs.

Synthesis, antimicrobial activity and molecular docking studies of spiroquinoline-indoline-dione and spiropyrazolo-indoline-dione derivatives

Spiro[benzo[h]quinoline-7,3'-indoline]diones and spiro[indoline-3,4'-pyrazolo[3,4-b]quinoline]diones were efficiently synthesized via one-pot multi-component reactions under ultrasound-promoted conditions. Spiro[benzo[h]quinoline-7,3'-indoline]dione derivatives were successfully developed by the reaction of isatins, naphthalene-1-amine and 1,3-dicarbonyl compounds. The spiro[indoline-3,4'-pyrazolo[3,4-b]quinoline]dione derivatives were prepared by the reaction of isatins, 5-amino-1-methyl-3-pheylpyrazole, and 1,3-dicarbonyl compounds by using ( ±)-camphor-10-sulfonic acid as a catalyst in H₂O/EtOH (3:1 v/v) solvent mixture. The antibacterial activity of the synthesized compounds was evaluated against, Enterococcus faecalis, Staphylococcus aureus and Candida albicans. Compounds 4b, 4h, and 6h showed the strongest antimicrobial activity toward both bacteria. The MIC values of these compounds ranged from 375-3000 µg/mL. The effect of these compounds (4b, 4h, 6h) as a function of applied dose and time was investigated by a kinetic study, and the interaction with these antimicrobial results was simulated by a molecular docking study. We also used the docking approach with Covid-19 since secondary bacterial infections. Docking showed that indoline-quinoline hybrid compounds 4b and 4h exerted the strongest docking binding value against the active sites of 6LU7. In addition, the synthesized compounds had a moderate to good free radical scavenging activity.

Evaluation of Bacterial Co-Infections and Antibiotic Resistance in Positive COVID-19 Patients

Aim: Due to the fact that patients with COVID--19 can have a bacterial co-infection, physicians should be careful when prescribing antibiotics, with rather considering the sensitivity and resistance of these drugs than various bacteria. Therefore, the main purpose of the present study was to evaluate bacterial coinfections and antibiotic resistance in positive COVID-19 patients. Method:This descriptive cross-sectional study was performed on 450 hospitalized COVID-19 patients who were selected by simple random sampling. Blood culture (BC) and endotracheal aspirate (ETA) were performed for all COVID-19 patients participating in the study. Antibacterial susceptibility was assessed using the standard Kirby-Bauer disk diffusion method on Mueller Hinton agar for all isolated strains in accordance with the Institute of Clinical and Laboratory Standards guidelines. Finally, susceptibility of all identified bacteria to 10 types of antibiotics was assessed. Results:Based on the results of endotracheal aspirate (ETA) culture, we found that 79 (17.5%) patients had COVID-19 and bacterial co-infection. Among COVID-19 patients with bacterial co-infection, Klebsiella species had the highest frequency (21.6%), followed by Methicillin-sensitive Staphylococcus aureus (MSSA) (19%), Escherichia coli (17.7%), Methicillin-resistant Staphylococcus aureus (MRSA) (15.2%), Enterobacter species (13.9%) and Pseudomonas aeruginosa (12.6%), respectively. Based on the results of the present study, it was found that the level of antibiotic resistance for different bacteria varied from 0-100%. Conclusion:The results of the present study indicate that patients with COVID-19 are susceptible to bacterial co-infection, which leads to the conclusion that excessive use of antibiotics is an important factor in the development of antimicrobial resistance. Therefore, caution is needed in prescribing different antibiotics to patients with COVID-19. In addition, considering the SARS-CoV-2 co-infection with other pathogens, it is necessary to use an optimal treatment method for this purpose.

Impact of SARS-CoV-2 Epidemic on Antimicrobial Resistance: A Literature Review

Antimicrobial resistance is an urgent threat to public health and global development; in this scenario, the SARS-CoV2 pandemic has caused a major disruption of healthcare systems and practices. A narrative review was conducted on articles focusing on the impact of COVID-19 on multidrug-resistant gram-negative, gram-positive bacteria, and fungi. We found that, worldwide, multiple studies reported an unexpected high incidence of infections due to methicillin-resistant S. aureus, carbapenem-resistant A. baumannii, carbapenem-resistant Enterobacteriaceae, and C. auris among COVID-19 patients admitted to the intensive care unit. In this setting, inappropriate antimicrobial exposure, environmental contamination, and discontinuation of infection control measures may have driven selection and diffusion of drug-resistant pathogens.

Clinical outcomes in patients co-infected with COVID-19 and Staphylococcus aureus: a scoping review

BACKGROUND

Endemic to the hospital environment, Staphylococcus aureus (S. aureus) is a leading bacterial pathogen that causes deadly infections such as bacteremia and endocarditis. In past viral pandemics, it has been the principal cause of secondary bacterial infections, significantly increasing patient mortality rates. Our world now combats the rapid spread of COVID-19, leading to a pandemic with a death toll greatly surpassing those of many past pandemics. However, the impact of co-infection with S. aureus remains unclear. Therefore, we aimed to perform a high-quality scoping review of the literature to synthesize the existing evidence on the clinical outcomes of COVID-19 and S. aureus co-infection.

METHODS

A scoping review of the literature was conducted in PubMed, Scopus, Ovid MEDLINE, CINAHL, ScienceDirect, medRxiv, and the WHO COVID-19 database using a combination of terms. Articles that were in English, included patients infected with both COVID-19 and S. aureus, and provided a description of clinical outcomes for patients were eligible. From these articles, the following data were extracted: type of staphylococcal species, onset of co-infection, patient sex, age, symptoms, hospital interventions, and clinical outcomes. Quality assessments of final studies were also conducted using the Joanna Briggs Institute's critical appraisal tools.

RESULTS

Searches generated a total of 1922 publications, and 28 articles were eligible for the final analysis. Of the 115 co-infected patients, there were a total of 71 deaths (61.7%) and 41 discharges (35.7%), with 62 patients (53.9%) requiring ICU admission. Patients were infected with methicillin-sensitive and methicillin-resistant strains of S. aureus, with the majority (76.5%) acquiring co-infection with S. aureus following hospital admission for COVID-19. Aside from antibiotics, the most commonly reported hospital interventions were intubation with mechanical ventilation (74.8 %), central venous catheter (19.1 %), and corticosteroids (13.0 %).

CONCLUSIONS

Given the mortality rates reported thus far for patients co-infected with S. aureus and COVID-19, COVID-19 vaccination and outpatient treatment may be key initiatives for reducing hospital admission and S. aureus co-infection risk. Physician vigilance is recommended during COVID-19 interventions that may increase the risk of bacterial co-infection with pathogens, such as S. aureus, as the medical community's understanding of these infection processes continues to evolve.

Bacterial coinfection among coronavirus disease 2019 patient groups: an updated systematic review and meta-analysis

The pandemic of severe acute respiratory syndrome coronavirus 2 raised the attention towards bacterial coinfection and its role in coronavirus disease 2019 (COVID-19) disease. This study aims to systematically review and identify the pooled prevalence of bacterial coinfection in the related articles. A comprehensive search was conducted in international databases, including MEDLINE, Scopus, Web of Science, and Embase, to identify the articles on the prevalence of bacterial coinfections in COIVD-19 patients from 1 December 2019 until 30 December 2020. All observational epidemiological studies that evaluated the prevalence of bacterial coinfections in patients with COVID-19 were included without any restriction. Forty-two studies including a total sample size of 54,695 were included in the analysis. The pooled estimate for the prevalence of bacterial coinfections was 20.97% (95% CI: 15.95-26.46), and the pooled prevalence of bacterial coinfections was 5.20% (95% CI: 2.39-8.91) for respiratory subtype and 4.79% (95% CI: 0.11-14.61) for the gastrointestinal subtype. The pooled prevalence for Eastern Mediterranean Regional Office and South-East Asia Regional Office was 100% (95% CI: 82.35-100.00) and 2.61% (95% CI: 1.74-3.62). This rate of coinfection poses a great danger towards patients, especially those in critical condition. Although there are multiple complications and adverse effects related to extensive use of antibiotics to treat patients with COVID-19, it seems there is no other option except applying them, and it needs to be done carefully.

Staphylococcus aureus ventilator-associated pneumonia in patients with COVID-19: clinical features and potential inference with lung dysbiosis

Background

Hospitalized patients with COVID-19 admitted to the intensive care unit (ICU) and requiring mechanical ventilation are at risk of ventilator-associated bacterial infections secondary to SARS-CoV-2 infection. Our study aimed to investigate clinical features of Staphylococcus aureus ventilator-associated pneumonia (SA-VAP) and, if bronchoalveolar lavage samples were available, lung bacterial community features in ICU patients with or without COVID-19.

Methods

We prospectively included hospitalized patients with COVID-19 across two medical ICUs of the Fondazione Policlinico Universitario A. Gemelli IRCCS (Rome, Italy), who developed SA-VAP between 20 March 2020 and 30 October 2020 (thereafter referred to as cases). After 1:2 matching based on the simplified acute physiology score II (SAPS II) and the sequential organ failure assessment (SOFA) score, cases were compared with SA-VAP patients without COVID-19 (controls). Clinical, microbiological, and lung microbiota data were analyzed.

Results

We studied two groups of patients (40 COVID-19 and 80 non-COVID-19). COVID-19 patients had a higher rate of late-onset (87.5% versus 63.8%; p = 0.01), methicillin-resistant (65.0% vs 27.5%; p < 0.01) or bacteremic (47.5% vs 6.3%; p < 0.01) infections compared with non-COVID-19 patients. No statistically significant differences between the patient groups were observed in ICU mortality (p = 0.12), clinical cure (p = 0.20) and microbiological eradication (p = 0.31). On multivariable logistic regression analysis, SAPS II and initial inappropriate antimicrobial therapy were independently associated with ICU mortality. Then, lung microbiota characterization in 10 COVID-19 and 16 non-COVID-19 patients revealed that the overall microbial community composition was significantly different between the patient groups (unweighted UniFrac distance, R² 0.15349; p < 0.01). Species diversity was lower in COVID-19 than in non COVID-19 patients (94.4 ± 44.9 vs 152.5 ± 41.8; p < 0.01). Interestingly, we found that S. aureus (log₂ fold change, 29.5), Streptococcus anginosus subspecies anginosus (log₂ fold change, 24.9), and Olsenella (log₂ fold change, 25.7) were significantly enriched in the COVID-19 group compared to the non–COVID-19 group of SA-VAP patients.

Conclusions

In our study population, COVID-19 seemed to significantly affect microbiological and clinical features of SA-VAP as well as to be associated with a peculiar lung microbiota composition.

Supplementary Information

The online version contains supplementary material available at 10.1186/s13054-021-03623-4.

Virulence alterations in staphylococcus aureus upon treatment with the sub-inhibitory concentrations of antibiotics

Background

The treatment of patients with Staphylococcus aureus infections mainly relies on antistaphylococcal regimens that are established with effective antibiotics. In antibiotic therapy or while living in nature, pathogens often face the sub-inhibitory concentrations (sub-MICs) of antibiotics due to drug pharmacokinetics, diffusion barriers, waste emission, resistant organism formation, and farming application. Different categories of antibiotics at sub-MICs have diverse effects on the physiological and chemical properties of microorganisms. These effects can result in virulence alterations. However, the mechanisms underlying the actions of antibiotics at sub-MICs on S. aureus virulence are obscure.

Aim of review

In this review, we focus on the effects of sub-MICs of antibiotics on S. aureus virulence from the aspects of cell morphological change, virulence factor expression, bacterial adherence and invasion, staphylococcal biofilm formation, and small-colony variant (SCV) production. The possible mechanisms of antibiotic-induced S. aureus virulence alterations are also addressed.

Key scientific concepts of review

Five main aspects of bacterial virulence can be changed in S. aureus exposure to the sub-MIC levels of antibiotics, resulting in deformed bacterial cells to stimulate abnormal host immune responses, abnormally expressed virulence factors to alter disease development, changed bacterial adhesion and invasion abilities to affect colonization and diffusion, altered biofilm formation to potentate material-related infections, and increased SCV formation to achieve persistent infection and recurrence. These advanced findings expand our knowledge to rethink the molecular signaling roles of antibiotics beyond their actions as antimicrobial agents.

Bacterial co-infections and antibiotic resistance in patients with COVID-19

Background: Bacterial co-infections are frequently identified in viral respiratory infections and are significant reasons for morbidity and mortality. Information on the prevalence of bacterial co-infection in patients infected with severe acute respiratory syndrome coronavirus 2 (SARS-CoV-2) is lacking. The purpose of this study was to determine the prevalence of bacterial infections and antibiotic resistance in patients with coronavirus disease (COVID-19). Methods: In a cross-sectional study, blood culture (BC) and endotracheal aspirate (ETA) were obtained from COVID-19 patients (RT-PCR positive for SARS-CoV-2). The bacterial isolates were confirmed by the standard microbiological methods. Antibiotic resistance was determined using the disk diffusion method. Results: Among these 340 patients with COVID-19, a total of 43 (12.46%) patients had secondary bacterial infections. The most common bacteria isolated through ETA and BC included Klebsiella species 11 (25.59%), methicillin-sensitive Staphylococcus aureus (MSSA) 9 (20.93%), Escherichia coli 7 (16.28%), methicillin-resistant Staph ylo coccus aureus (MRSA) 6 (13.95%), Enterobacter species 5 (11.63%), Streptococcus pneumoniae 1 (2.32%), and Pseudomonas aeruginosa 4 (9.30%). The results showed that Enterobacteriaceae isolates from COVID-19 patients had the highest resistance to cotrimoxazole (74%), piperacillin (67.5%), ceftazidime (47.5%), and cefepime (42.5%). All isolates were susceptible to amikacin (100%). S. aureus isolates were susceptible to vancomycin (100%) and the rates of resistance to oxacillin, erythromycin and clindamycin were over (90%). P. aeruginosa was susceptible (90%) to imipenem. Conclusions: Bacterial co-infection is relatively infrequent in hospitalized COVID-19 patients. According to the results, one of the causes of death of these patients could be a secondary infections.