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Background There is a clear need for a better assessment of independent risk factors for in-hospital mortality, intensive care unit admission, and bacteremia in patients presenting with suspected sepsis at the emergency department. Methods A prospective observational cohort study including 1690 patients was performed. Two multivariable logistic regression models were used to identify independent risk factors. Results Sequential organ failure assessment (SOFA) score of ≥2 and serum lactate of ≥2mmol/L were associated with all outcomes. Other independent risk factors were individual SOFA variables and systemic inflammatory response syndrome variables but varied per outcome. Mean arterial pressure <70 mmHg negatively impacted all outcomes. Conclusions These readily available measurements can help with early risk stratification and prediction of prognosis. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

The article presents describes the case of a 17-year-old White female with anti-Mi-2 autoantibodies three months before IIM-specific symptom onset. She was diagnosed with anti-Mi-2 positive dermatomyositis (DM) and treated with methylprednisolone. This illustrates that anti-Mi-2 autoantibodies can be detected before DM-specific symptoms.

The colorimetric Vitek 2 YST card and the yeast susceptibility test (AST-YS01) were evaluated for their identification efficacy and their use in assessing the in vitro susceptibility of Candida spp. to fluconazole, voriconazole and amphotericin B. Ninety-one percent or 62 of 68 Candida isolates from blood specimens were correctly identified, as compared to determinations of the ITS2 fragment length. The overall essential agreements between Vitek 2 and the Sensititre YeastOne (SYO) colorimetric method were 78.4%, 84.6% and 90.8%, for fluconazole, voriconazole and amphotericin B, respectively. The overall categorical agreements between Vitek 2 and SYO for fluconazole and voriconazole were 76.9% and 96.9%, respectively. The poorest agreement between Vitek 2 and SYO was seen with C. glabrata ( n = 27), particularly for fluconazole. The MIC values of 2 C. glabrata strains (3%) could not be determined with the Vitek 2 due to an insufficient growth in the control well. For other Candida species ( n = 38) Vitek 2 and SYO showed acceptable agreements. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]