Search

Background Infection with the novel severe acute respiratory syndrome coronavirus 2 has been associated with a hypercoagulable state. Emerging data from China and Europe have consistently shown an increased incidence of venous thromboembolism (VTE). We aimed to identify the VTE incidence and early predictors of VTE at our high-volume tertiary care center. Methods We performed a retrospective cohort study of 147 patients who had been admitted to Temple University Hospital with coronavirus disease 2019 (COVID-19) from April 1, 2020 to April 27, 2020. We first identified the VTE (pulmonary embolism [PE] and deep vein thrombosis [DVT]) incidence in our cohort. The VTE and no-VTE groups were compared by univariable analysis for demographics, comorbidities, laboratory data, and treatment outcomes. Subsequently, multivariable logistic regression analysis was performed to identify the early predictors of VTE. Results The 147 patients (20.9% of all admissions) admitted to a designated COVID-19 unit at Temple University Hospital with a high clinical suspicion of acute VTE had undergone testing for VTE using computed tomography pulmonary angiography and/or extremity venous duplex ultrasonography. The overall incidence of VTE was 17% (25 of 147). Of the 25 patients, 16 had had acute PE, 14 had had acute DVT, and 5 had had both PE and DVT. The need for invasive mechanical ventilation (adjusted odds ratio, 3.19; 95% confidence interval, 1.07-9.55) and the admission D-dimer level ≥1500 ng/mL (adjusted odds ratio, 3.55; 95% confidence interval, 1.29-9.78) were independent markers associated with VTE. The all-cause mortality in the VTE group was greater than that in the non-VTE group (48% vs 22%; P = .007). Conclusions Our study represents one of the earliest reported from the United States on the incidence rate of VTE in patients with COVID-19. Patients with a high clinical suspicion and the identified risk factors (invasive mechanical ventilation, admission D-dimer level ≥1500 ng/mL) should be considered for early VTE testing. We did not screen all patients admitted for VTE; therefore, the true incidence of VTE could have been underestimated. Our findings require confirmation in future prospective studies.

Background People who inject drugs (PWID) are at risk for infectious complications of their injection practices, including Staphylococcus aureus (SA) bacteremia. Prolonged hospitalization is sometimes required; however, rates of discharges against medical advice (AMA) are elevated in this patient population. Inadequate control of pain and opioid withdrawal are commonly cited. Our aim was to assess the effectiveness of addiction medicine consultation for preventing AMA discharges. Methods We performed a retrospective chart review of adult PWID admitted to an urban hospital with SA bacteremia between August 2016 and May 2018. Demographics, HIV and HCV status, and presence or absence of addiction medicine consultation were recorded. We assessed whether discharges were planned or AMA; the number of hospitalizations at 30 days, 90 days, and 1 year from index admission; and death within one year. EpiInfo6 was used for data analysis. Results A total of 360 patients with SA bacteremia were reviewed. Of these, 101 reported intravenous opioid use at admission. Average age was 37 years, and 64% were male. HIV and HCV were present in 13% and 82% of patients, respectively. Addiction medicine was consulted on 29 patients. Of these, 4/29 (13.8%) left AMA, compared to 27/72 (37.5%) of patients without an addiction consult (RR = 0.3678 [95% CI = 0.1412 - 0.9583], p = 0.02). Patients receiving addiction medicine consultation averaged 0.17 readmissions within 30 days of their index admission, compared to 0.39 readmissions in the group without addiction medicine consult (p = 0.27). Readmissions at 90 days and 1 year were also lower but not statistically significant. At 1 year, 6 deaths were observed; 2 who had addiction medicine consultation and 4 who did not. Conclusion Consultation with an addiction medicine specialist significantly reduced the number of patients discharged AMA in a high-risk cohort of PWID presenting with SA bacteremia. Numerically fewer readmissions occurred after consultation, though this difference was not statistically significant. Mortality in both groups was low. There were high rates of HIV and HCV in this patient population, suggesting a particularly vulnerable patient population, which warrants further study. Disclosures All Authors: No reported disclosures

Studies on the innate immune response against microbial infections in Drosophila melanogaster involve mutant strains and their reference strains that act as experimental controls. We used five standard D. melanogaster laboratory reference strains (Oregon R, w1118, Canton-S, Cinnabar Brown, and Yellow White [YW]) and investigated their response against two pathogenic bacteria ( Photorhabdus luminescens and Enterococcus faecalis ) and two nonpathogenic bacteria ( Escherichia coli and Micrococcus luteus ). We detected high sensitivity among YW flies to bacterial infections and increased bacterial growth compared to the other strains. We also found variation in the transcription of certain antimicrobial peptide genes among strains, with Oregon and YW infected flies showing the highest and lowest gene transcription levels in most cases. We show that Oregon and w1118 flies possess more circulating hemocytes and higher levels of phenoloxidase activity than the other strains upon infection with the nonpathogenic bacteria. We further observed reduced fat accumulation in YW flies infected with the pathogenic bacteria, which suggests a possible decline in physiological condition. Finally, we found that nitrite levels are significantly lower in infected and uninfected YW flies compared to w1118 flies and that nitric oxide synthase mutant flies in YW background are more susceptible to bacterial infection compared to mutants in w1118 background. Therefore, increased sensitivity of YW flies to bacterial infections can be partly attributed to lower levels of nitric oxide. Such studies will significantly contribute toward a better understanding of the genetic variation between D. melanogaste r reference strains.