Infection Control News: July 23-27, 2018

The man who invented modern infection control: He’s hailed as the “father of infection control” and the “savior of mothers,” but the truth about Ignaz Semmelweis is more complicated than that. Article

Global Survey of Antibiotic Resistance Genes in Air. Journal

Fidaxomicin “better” option than vancomycin in many C. difficile cases. News.

Acrylic nails harbor more bacteria than natural nails, but little is known about the new and popular gel nail. Acrylic & natural nails may be more amenable to hand hygiene than gel polish. Gel nails may be more difficult to clean using alcohol hand gel. Study.

From The Spectator: Mosquitoes test positive for West Nile in Halton. News.

Rapid Expansion of Multidrug Resistant E Coli Clone ST1193 in the United States. News

New way to target flu virus: In a paper in the Proceedings of the National Academy of Sciences, a research team delves further into a glycoprotein complex it began to define in a 2014 paper. News

From GlobalNews video: Dr. Jim Kellner explain why some parents are choosing not to get their kids vaccinated and the possible consequences. News.

A woman likely spread Ebola a year after infection. It is suggest that pregnancy may have played a role in triggering the virus flare. News. See also: Study.

Varicella-zoster virus inhibits autophagosome-lysosome fusion and the degradation stage of mTOR-mediated autophagic flux. Journal

Public Health investigating outbreak of Salmonella infections linked to frozen chicken. News

How salmonella may have ended up in Honey Smacks cereal and Goldfish crackers News

From Toronto Star: DRC confirms end to Ebola virus outbreak. Over the course, the DRC recorded 54 cases, 33 of them fatal. Of the 54 cases, 38 were lab-confirmed and 16 were classified as probable. News.  See also CDC statement

Planning to visit Africa? Think ESBL colonization. Africa has become a popular  destination for international travellers, but data from 396 travellers showed that the highest colonization rates were seen in Egypt (70,6%), than Ghana and Tanzania. Study.

Are the educational videos on hand hygiene on Youtube helpful? Lim and al. conducted a search of the media. They screened 400 videos. 70 were retained and 39 were categorized as educationally useful. Miscommunication was observed in several videos. Study.  

Bats harbor a gene swiped from an ancient Ebola-like virus — here’s how they may use it. Study suggests that a gene encoding a viral protein has been carefully preserved in Myotis bats for millions of years. News  

CICs: CBIC has a social media “badge” you can add to your Facebook or LinkedIn profile. https://www.cbic.org/media/cicr-badges

The number of Cyclospora infections are increasing in Ontario and Ottawa regions.

Infection are characterized by frequent watery diarrhea, anorexia, fatigue, abdominal cramps, nausea and myalgia. Cyclospora infection is a reportable disease. Reportable disease.

In AJIC: Environmental considerations in the selection of isolation gowns. compared to the disposable gown system, the reusable one showed lots of environmental benefits like energy consumption, gas emissions, blue water consumption & waste generation. Study.

Hepatitis day is July 28. Find more about symptoms, causes, complications, tests, treatments, coping and prevention for hepatitis C on BCCDC.ca. Clinical information.

CBC: Number of people unknowingly contracting hepatitis C on the rise. News.

Earlier this week we issued a warning regarding the presence of Salmonella in a Campbell Company of Canada product. USA today shows how salmonella is able to infiltrate in such products. News.

Eating uncooked pork can be dangerous. A 8 yr old girl suffered from severe headaches & epileptic seizures for months. More than 100 eggs of a parasite, most likely T. solium, have been found in her brain. Read how these eggs migrated there. News.

Yemen ‘on brink of new cholera epidemic’, charity warns. News

Positive results for West Nile Virus were found in Ottawa this season. This result comes relatively early, and may indicate an active season. Info on lab testing may be found at the PHO website. look under Laboratory: 1) Testing Information and 2) Labstract. www.publichealthontario.ca/westnilevirus

In CBC: Mutated strains of HIV circulating in Saskatchewan are leading to faster-developing AIDS-related illnesses in the Indigenous population. News.

Earlier this week, blamed on a pedicure, a woman almost lost her leg after infection: News | Infection control information