Highlights from the second ICPIC
Authors: Raffaella Bosurgi
Journal: The Lancet Infectious Diseases (2013)

Infectious diseases experts from around the world gathered in Geneva for the International Conference on Prevention and Infection Control (ICPIC). Raffaella Bosurgi reports. Arash Afshari (Paediatric and Neonatal Intensive Care Service, Geneva, Switzerland and Rigshospitalet, Copenhagen, Denmark) reported on rapid diagnostic techniques for sepsis. At present, diagnosis relies on culture-based pathogen detection, which normally takes 24–72 h (followed by a further 12–36 h for identification), is expensive, and has low sensitivity. Molecular methods have higher sensitivity and allow for more rapid detection. Multiplex real-time assays, which simultaneously amplify multiple targets of DNA in the same biological sample, are most promising for rapid, direct identification of pathogens from biological samples. Afshari discussed tests including SepsiTest (Molzym, Bremen, Germany), which detects more than 300 pathogens and markers of drug resistance and has a turnaround time of 8–12 h; VYOO LOOXSTER (SIRS-Lab, Jena, Germany), which detects more than 40 pathogens within 8 h; PLEX-ID (Abbott Molecular, Carlsbad, CA, USA), which detects several pathogens (including viruses) and has a turnaround of 8–12 h; and Magiplex (Seegene, Seoul, South Korea), the most recent multiplex device, which detects more than 90 different pathogens and has a turnaround time of 3–4 h. SeptiFast (Roche, Manheim, Germany) is the most used assay; it has a turnaround time of 6 h, can detect meticillin-resistant Staphylococcus aureus, and costs €150–200 per test. Ashari discussed a study from Peter Michael Rath and colleagues of patients with sepsis in intensive-care units after liver transplantation. The rate of SeptiFast positivity was significantly higher in patients who had undergone liver transplantation (52·3%) than in those who had not (30·5%; p=0·0009). Afshari also reported on use of MALDI-TOF MS (Bruker Daltonics, Bremen, Germany) to identify organisms that are difficult to detect by conventional methods—eg, mycobacteria, non-fermenting bacteria. The instrument has three components: a specimen-ionisation chamber, a time-of-flight mass analyser, and a particle detector. Sample preparation is simple and involves transferring a portion of an isolated colony onto a target plate. The US Food and Drug Administration has not yet approved any commercial MALDI-TOF MS system for clinical use. However, this technology offers improved turnaround time and could eventually supplant conventional microbiological identification methods. In a special plenary session, Ziad A Memish (Deputy Minister for Public Health, Saudi Arabia) gave an up-to-date presentation about Middle East respiratory syndrome coronavirus (MERS-CoV) in the Middle East and beyond. A new virus, human coronavirus–Erasmus Medical Center, was identified in 2012 from the sputum of a 60-year-old patient in Saudi Arabia, who died of a severe acute respiratory crisis. 3 months later, WHO was informed of a Qatari national transferred to UK for treatment, in whom the same type of virus was implicated. In November, 2012, the new coronavirus was renamed Middle East coronavirus and was identified retrospectivley in samples from April, 2012, which were obtained from 14 patients with severe pneumonia in Zarqa, Jordan. At the time of the conference, 77 laboratory-confirmed cases of MERS-CoV have been reported to WHO (40 fatal). As of July 10, 81 cases have been laboratory confirmed. All cases have been linked to one or more of Jordan, Qatar, Saudi Arabia, United Arab Emirates, or the UK. 62 cases (34 fatal) have been reported by Saudi Arabia. Mild asymptomatic disease seems to be common, which makes case definition difficult. Memish also reported about a hospital outbreak of 23 cases in Al-Hasa, Saudi Arabia. Of 217 household contacts investigated, five family members and two health workers developed MERS-CoV. Interventions included monitoring of hand hygiene, provision of masks to all patients, exclusion of visitors, and testing for MERS-CoV. Discussion about treatment is ongoing in Saudi Arabia. Steroids, ribavirin, and interferon were tried in a few places without clear benefits. The animal reservoir also remains unclear. 1100 samples from different species of bats in three different locations in Saudi Arabia were analysed, but MERS-CoV was not detected. So far, there is no clear epidemiological link to exposure to a specific animal species. The keynote lecture was given by Keith Klugman (Emory University, Atlanta, GA, USA) and was about how vaccines can reduce antibiotic resistance. He reported that pneumococcal conjugate vaccine has reduced the burden of antibiotic-resistant pneumococci, particularly as causes of invasive infections, in the USA. In many countries, serotype 19A has emerged as a major cause of invasive pneumococcal disease, and both antibiotic selection and vaccination can select for these highly resistant clones. Resistance is also emerging in types 6C, 15A, 23A, and 35B. For more on ICPIC see http://www.ICPIC2013.com/ For more on ICPIC see http://www.ICPIC2013.com/