Active clinical trials for "Pneumonia"

The VRI device may provide a complementary diagnostic tool for lung examination and aid the physician in determining whether a chest x-ray should be performed.

Nursing Home Acquired Pneumonia (NHAP) causes excessive morbidity, mortality, hospitalization, and loss of function. At any given time, 1.1-2.5% of veterans who reside at nursing home care units (NHCUs) and State Veterans Homes (SVHs) are ill with pneumonia. Multi-faceted implementation of evidence-based guidelines has been shown to be feasible in the private sector. Retrospective studies demonstrate an association between guideline adherence and improved survival.

Background: Ventilator-acquired pneumonia (VAP) is the most prevalent nosocomial infection in intensive care units (ICUs). Early microbiological diagnosis and initial administration of appropriate antimicrobial therapy are associated with a better outcome. Broad-spectrum antibiotics should therefore be administered initially. However, inconsiderate antibiotic use can increase the prevalence of multi-resistant bacteria. Purpose: A rapid antimicrobial susceptibility method is required to decrease the unnecessary use of empirical broad-spectrum antibiotics. The aim of this study is to compare the efficiency of a rapid antibiogram, provided by E-test strips directly applied to bronchoalveolar lavage (BAL) samples and analysed at 24 h, to that obtained with standard methods of culture which provide a later result. Study design: This will be an open-label, prospective cohort study of consecutive patients with VAP, conducted in a medical ICU. In addition to standard culture methods, an E-test will be performed directly on BAL samples and analysed at 24 h. Each standard BAL culture will be used as a control for the E-test method. Primary outcome: The occurrence of major errors, defined as isolates determined to be susceptible by the E-test but resistant by standard culture methods. Secondary outcomes: The occurrence of minor errors (defined as isolates determined to be resistant by the E-test and susceptible by the standard method), and a comparison of two methods of seeding BAL samples on Mueller Hinton agar plates (swabbing method, flooding method). Eligibility criteria: Inclusion criteria: all patients with suspected VAP (defined by a Clinical Pulmonary Infection Score ≥5) undergoing BAL will be eligible. Exclusion criteria: contraindications for BAL (PaO2/FIO2 <100, risk of bronchoscopy-related haemorrhagic complications), secondary exclusion of patients with negative cultures, defined by a threshold of bacteria <104 CFU/ml. Interventions: BAL samples will be cultured by standard methods and the minimal inhibitory concentration (MIC) of bacteria to the usual antibiotics will be determined using standard procedures. At the time of BAL collection, a rapid antibiogram will be performed by placing E-test antibiotic strips (AB Biodisk) directly onto Mueller-Hinton agar plates seeded with the BAL specimen (both by flooding and swabbing). E-test strips will be impregnated with cefoxitin, piperacillin-tazobactam, cefepime, imipenem, ciprofloxacin and amikacin. At 24 h, the E-test plates will be photographed and then examined separately by both a bacteriologist and a medical ICU physician following a consensus method. The final E-test results will be compared with the standard MIC cultures.

This study tests whether special oral care provided by nurses to critically ill patients who are on a breathing machine (mechanical ventilator) can help to reduce the build-up of dental plaque on the teeth and reduce the risk of pneumonia.

Background:Hypersensitivity pneumonitis (HP) is an interstitial lung disease that develops after inhalation of organic or inorganic antigens in susceptible individuals. The nasal mucosa is constantly exposed to these antigens that can irritate the respiratory mucosa. Objectives: to assess the burden of sinonasal symptoms in HP patients and to evaluate the nasal histopathology in those patients.

Ventilator-associated events (VAE) are a scourge of critical care settings and hospital systems at large. There is extensive evidence that ventilator-associated pneumonia (VAP) and related VAEs increase mortality rates in critically ill patients by up to 50%, while simultaneously increasing cost of care. C Best-practice guidelines state that positioning ventilated patients at an angle between 30-45 degrees significantly reduces the potential for VAP and other VAE to develop. While the intent of the guidelines is to govern patient elevation angle, the lack of a mechanism to accurately measure patient elevation requires that nurses rely on the head-of-bed (HOB) protractor - a tool which reflects the angle of the bed, not the patient - to measure compliance. Depending upon the position and posture of the patient in the bed, a patient's elevation angle may be significantly different from the HOB angle. Critical care teams currently rely on built-in HOB protractors and digital inclinometers that measure the angle of the bed not the patient. Angulus, LLC has developed a dual-component Angulus sensor to fill this gap in critical care technology. Angulus enables critical care practitioners to instantaneously understand a patient's elevation, identify when the patient is outside of the desired 30-45 degree recumbency scope, and efficiently correct the patient's orientation with immediate feedback. Angulus supports real-time minute-to-minute data display as well as longitudinal aggregation of data.

Ventilation-associated pneumonia is the main site of healthcare-associated infections in the severe trauma patient, with a mean incidence rate of 35%. Ventilator-associated pneumonia increases morbi-mortality, length of stay in intensive care and overall management costs. As was recalled by the jury of the 2008 SFAR-SRLF consensus conference on the prevention of nosocomial infections contracted in intensive care, success in this preventive endeavour depends on a number of measures: orotracheal intubation route, maintaining tube cuff pressure between 25 and 30 cm H2O, maintaining a semi-seated position ≥30°, nasal and oropharyngeal care at regular intervals, striving to avoid unscheduled extubation, and use of a written sedation-analgesia algorithm allowing for early weaning from ventilation. Devices ensuring continuous pneumatic control of tube cuff pressure are more efficient in maintaining tracheal balloon pressure than intermittent adjustments using a hand-held manometer. In one study, these devices clearly facilitated diminution of microaspiration of gastric contents and of ventilator-associated pneumonia incidence density (9.7 vs. 22 VAP/1000 days of mechanical ventilation; p = 0.005). The investigators are putting forward the hypothesis that by adjoining a device providing continuous pneumatic regulation of tube cuff pressure to an overall strategy aimed at ventilator-associated pneumonia prevention (including semi-recumbent position ≥30°, oro-nasal-pharyngeal care at regular intervals and reduced risk exposure) can decrease VAP incidence by 50% in severely traumatised patients whose condition necessitates mechanical ventilation of an expected duration exceeding 48h. Ours is the first large-scale study to evaluate the interest of an innovative technology bundle on decrease of ventilator-associated pneumonia incidence in one of the intensive care populations the most at risk, namely severe trauma patients, a population presently benefiting from the other recommended preventive measures.

Hospitalised patients have in contrast to healthy people enteric pathogenic bacteria in their oropharynx Increased risk of pneumonia due to the pathogens in the oropharynx Probiotics can reduce such bacteria in intubated critically ill patients This study will use two strain of probiotic bacteria for half of the patients and a placebo for the rest Active arm gurgles with a suspension twice a day Cultures at inclusion and at set time intervals The results of cultures from the two groups will be compared as will the use of antibiotics

Ventilation-associated pneumonia (VAP) is the main site of healthcare-associated infections in the brain injured patients, with an incidence rate of 22% to 58%. VAP increases morbi-mortality, length of stay in intensive care and overall management costs. The prevention of ICU nosocomial infections depends on several measures : orotracheal intubation route, maintaining tube cuff pressure between 25 and 30 cm of water (H2O), maintaining a semi-seated position >= 30°, nasal and oropharyngeal care at regular intervals, striving to avoid unscheduled extubation, and use of a written sedation-analgesia algorithm allowing for early weaning from ventilation. Two randomized study show that administration of antibiotic therapy after intubation reduces the risk of early VAP incidence. However, in clinical practice, its administration solely purposes of limiting VAP occurence is not presently recommended. Indeed, to date no placebo blind controlled study was been realized and the fear of development of bacterial resistance remains stronger than the efficiency of this prevention measure. This aim of the present study is to show by a placebo randomized study that 2g of Ceftriaxone within 8 hours post-intubation after a brain injury decrease the risk of occurence an early VAP. Ancillary study An ancillary study is performed in 2 centres which routinely practice rectal swabs at admission and discharge of ICU, to survey intestinal flora (CHU of Angers and CHU of Rennes). The goal of this study is to compare the incidence of acquired cephalosporin resistant gram negative bacteria at the discharge of ICU between the 2 groups of patients, receiving or not ceftriaxone.

The purpose of the study is to determine whether automated cuff pressure control results in a reduction in the proportion of patients developing ventilator associated respiratory infections during their stay in intensive care.