The use of topical anesthesia to perform intradermal tests (IDTs) for drug allergy diagnosis was never investigated. We aimed to determine the effects of a topical anesthetic patch containing prilocaine-lidocaine on wheal size of IDT with drugs. Patients who had positive IDT as part of their investigation process of suspected drug hypersensitivity were selected. IDT were performed according to guidelines. Anesthetic patch (AP) was placed and the same prior positive IDT, as well as positive histamine skin prick test (SPT) and negative (saline IDT) controls, were performed in the anesthetized area. Patients with negative IDT were also included to check for false positives with AP. Increase in wheals after 20 minutes both with and without AP was recorded and compared. 45 IDT were performed (36 patients), of which 37 have been previously positive (14 antibiotics, 10 general anesthetics, 6 non-steroidal anti-inflammatory drugs, 3 iodinated contrasts, 3 anti-Hi-histamines and 1 ranitidine). Mean histamine SPT size without the AP was 4.7 mm [95%CI (4.4-5.1]), and 4.6 mm [95%CI(4.2-5.0)] with anesthesia. Mean wheal increase in IDT for drugs without the anesthesia was 4.5 mm [95%CI(3.3-5.7)] and with anesthesia was 4.3 mm [95%CI(2.8-5.8)]. No statistical significant differences were observed between skin tests with or without AP for histamine SPT (P=0.089), IDT with saline (P=0.750), and IDT with drugs (P=0.995). None of the patients with negative IDT showed positivity with the AP, or vice-versa. The use of an AP containing prilocaine-lidocaine does not interfere with IDT to diagnose drug allergy, and no false positive tests were found.
Anesthesia ; Anesthetics, General ; Anti-Bacterial Agents ; Diagnosis* ; Drug Hypersensitivity* ; Histamine ; Humans ; Intradermal Tests* ; Skin ; Skin Tests

Background: Carnivore protoparvovirus 1, also known as canine parvovirus type 2 (CPV-2), is the main pathogen in hemorrhagic gastroenteritis in dogs, with a high mortality rate. Three subtypes (a, b, c) have been described based on VP2 residue 426, where 2a, 2b, and 2c have asparagine, aspartic acid, and glutamic acid, respectively. Objectives: This study examined the presence of CPV-2 variants in the fecal samples of dogs diagnosed with canine parvovirus in Bogotá. Methods: Fecal samples were collected from 54 puppies and young dogs (< 1 year) that tested positive for the CPV through rapid antigen test detection between 2014–2018. Molecular screening was developed for VP1 because primers 555 for VP2 do not amplify, it was necessary to design a primer set for VP2 amplification of 982 nt. All samples that were amplified were sequenced by Sanger. Phylogenetics and structural analysis was carried out, focusing on residue 426. Results: As a result 47 out of 54 samples tested positive for VP1 screening, and 34/47 samples tested positive for VP2 980 primers as subtype 2a (n = 30) or 2b (n = 4); subtype 2c was not detected. All VP2 sequences had the amino acid, T, at 440, and most Colombian sequences showed an S514A substitution, which in the structural modeling is located in an antigenic region, together with the 426 residue. Conclusions The 2c variant was not detected, and these findings suggest that Colombian strains of CPV-2 might be under an antigenic drift.

Background: Chronic bovine mastitis is linked to biofilm-producing Staphylococcus aureus (bpSa) or Staphylococcus coagulase-negative (bp-Scn). Objectives: Bp-Sa and bp-Scn were treated with intramammary preparations of either enrofloxacin HCl·2H2O-dimethyl-sulfoxide-chitosan (enro-C/DMSO/chitosan) or enro-C alone. Their potential to inhibit and degrade biofilm formation in vitro was also assessed. Methods: Milk samples were obtained from the affected quarters in a herd. Phenotypical and genotypical identifications as biofilm-producing Staphylococcus species were carried out.Enro-C/DMSO/chitosan and enro-C alone were assessed to determine their in vitro efficacy in interfering with biofilm formation and their bactericidal effects. A prolonged eight-day treatment with a twice-daily intramammary insertion of 10 mL of enro-C/DMSO/chitosan or enro-C alone was set to evaluate the clinical and bacteriological cures on day 10 in 15 cows per group and the biofilm-inhibiting ability. Results: Fifty-seven percent of the isolates were identified as Staphylococcus spp., of which 50% were bp-Sa, 46% bp-Scn, and 4% Staphylococcus pseudintermedius. One hundred percent of the S. aureus isolated and 77% of Staphylococcus coagulase-negative were biofilm producers. In both groups, the icaA and icaD biofilm-producing genes were identified. The experimental preparation could inhibit biofilm formation, degrade mature biofilms, and have well-defined microbicidal effects on planktonic and biofilm bacteria. The respective clinical and bacteriological cure rates were 100% and 80% for enro-C/DMSO/chitosan and 41.7% and 25% for enro-C alone. Conclusions Enro-C/DMSO/chitosan eliminates bp-Sa and bp-Scn from cases of chronic bovine mastitis.

Background: and Purpose Recent studies suggested an increased incidence of cerebral venous thrombosis (CVT) during the coronavirus disease 2019 (COVID-19) pandemic. We evaluated the volume of CVT hospitalization and in-hospital mortality during the 1st year of the COVID-19 pandemic compared to the preceding year. Methods: We conducted a cross-sectional retrospective study of 171 stroke centers from 49 countries. We recorded COVID-19 admission volumes, CVT hospitalization, and CVT in-hospital mortality from January 1, 2019, to May 31, 2021. CVT diagnoses were identified by International Classification of Disease-10 (ICD-10) codes or stroke databases. We additionally sought to compare the same metrics in the first 5 months of 2021 compared to the corresponding months in 2019 and 2020 (ClinicalTrials.gov Identifier: NCT04934020). Results: There were 2,313 CVT admissions across the 1-year pre-pandemic (2019) and pandemic year (2020); no differences in CVT volume or CVT mortality were observed. During the first 5 months of 2021, there was an increase in CVT volumes compared to 2019 (27.5%; 95% confidence interval [CI], 24.2 to 32.0; P<0.0001) and 2020 (41.4%; 95% CI, 37.0 to 46.0; P<0.0001). A COVID-19 diagnosis was present in 7.6% (132/1,738) of CVT hospitalizations. CVT was present in 0.04% (103/292,080) of COVID-19 hospitalizations. During the first pandemic year, CVT mortality was higher in patients who were COVID positive compared to COVID negative patients (8/53 [15.0%] vs. 41/910 [4.5%], P=0.004). There was an increase in CVT mortality during the first 5 months of pandemic years 2020 and 2021 compared to the first 5 months of the pre-pandemic year 2019 (2019 vs. 2020: 2.26% vs. 4.74%, P=0.05; 2019 vs. 2021: 2.26% vs. 4.99%, P=0.03). In the first 5 months of 2021, there were 26 cases of vaccine-induced immune thrombotic thrombocytopenia (VITT), resulting in six deaths. Conclusions During the 1st year of the COVID-19 pandemic, CVT hospitalization volume and CVT in-hospital mortality did not change compared to the prior year. COVID-19 diagnosis was associated with higher CVT in-hospital mortality. During the first 5 months of 2021, there was an increase in CVT hospitalization volume and increase in CVT-related mortality, partially attributable to VITT.