Diseases and Pathogens

Objective. To determine antigenic and genetic characteristics of Neisseria meningitidis isolated from the patients with invasive meningococcal infections in Smolensk region in comparison with those circulating in other regions. Materials and Methods. A total of 14 cerebrospinal fluid samples obtained in 2016–2019 and containing N. meningitidis DNA were tested using AmpliSens® Nm-ABCW kit, multilocus sequence typing and antigenic finetyping of outer membrane proteins. The results were analyzed by the BURST algorithm and other functionalities available at PubMLST.

Objective. To assess efficacy and safety of methylprednisolone pulse therapy in patients with COVID-19. Materials and Methods. A retrospective analysis of 57 patients with moderate and severe novel coronavirus infection (COVID-19) receiving methylprednisolone pulse therapy (500 mg/day IV for 2–3 consecutive days) was performed. Pre- and post-therapy examination of the patients included clinical (severity and duration of fever, gas exchange parameters), imaging (computed tomography) and laboratory tests (including C-reactive protein, procalcitonin, D-dimer).

This review provides an analysis of causes why Klebsiella pneumoniae takes a leading place among opportunistic human bacteria. The review includes the history of K. pneumoniae studies, microbiological properties and various Klebsiella-associated …

Objective. To estimate the prevalence of S. pneumoniae serotypes in adults aged of 18 years and older, including healthy carriers and patients with acute otitis media (AOM), community-acquired pneumonia (CAP) and invasive pneumococcal infection (IPI). Materials and Methods. A total of 230 isolates of S. pneumoniae from 10 centers were included in the study from 01.06.2019 to 01.10.2019. Re-identification and typing using real-time PCR with 22 primer pairs were performed in the central laboratory (Institute of Antimicrobial Chemotherapy, Russia).

Objective. To perform a comparative analysis of clinical and food isolates of Listeria monocytogenes collected in the European part of Russia in 2018–2019. Materials and Methods. We used multilocus sequencing (MLST), supplemented by virulence loci, including fragments of internalin genes (MvLST, Multi-virulent-locus sequence typing), followed by phylogenetic analysis. Results. The main diagnoses for clinical isolates were prenatal and neonatal listeriosis and meningitis. Clinical isolates predominantly belonged to phylogenetic line II with the predominance of ST7, which was also the most abundant in food isolates.

The success in preventing hepatitis B virus and human papillomavirus infections by means of vaccination paves the way for the development of other vaccines to prevent sexually transmitted infections (STIs) such as gonorrhoea, syphilis, chlamydia, …

Objective. To evaluate Staphylococcus species diversity and methicillin resistance in nosocomial infections. Materials and Methods. Staphylococci isolated from blood, bronchoalveolar lavage fluid, cerebrospinal fluid, post-operative wound exudates, urine and other samples were identified to species level with MALDITOF mass-spectrometry. Methicillin resistance was evaluated according to EUCAST guidelines. Results. A total of 3239 consecutive Staphylococcus strains isolated in a tertiary-care medical centre, accumulating patients from all Russian regions were identified in 2016–2017 as 1460 (45.

Adverse drug reactions affecting gastrointestinal tract, quite often with the development of antibioticassociated diarrhea, are the most common undesirable effects of antibiotic therapy in outpatient practice. This review provides modern approaches …

Objective. To study management of patients with peptic ulcer based on outpatient card data and to evaluate changes in methods for diagnosis of H. pylori and treatment prescriptions compared with 2004– 2005. Materials and Methods. A total of 100 outpatient cards of patients aged 18 years and older who came to outpatient clinic visit for peptic ulcer over the period of 2015–2018 were analyzed. The results of this study were compared with the data from the pharmacoepidemiological study «Ulcer», which was performed in 2004–2005 in Smolensk.

This article summarizes data on etiology, epidemiology and clinical presentation of acute liver failure. The review provides statistics on the incidence rates of acute liver failure in patients with different underlying diseases, describes the most …