Acinetobacter baumannii is an opportunistic bacterial pathogen primarily associated with hospital-acquired infections. The recent increase in incidence, largely associated with infected combat troops returning from conflict zones, coupled with a dramatic increase in the incidence of multidrug-resistant (MDR) strains, has significantly raised the profile of this emerging opportunistic pathogen. Herein, we provide an overview of the pathogen, discuss some of the major factors that have led to its clinical prominence and outline some of the novel therapeutic strategies currently in development.

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Impact of Carotid Artery Stenosis on Quality of Life: a systematic review.

This review highlighted a lack of evidence in validated PROMs used for patients undergoing carotid artery revascularization. As a result, the development and validation of a new PROM for this patient population is warranted to provide data which can supplement traditional clinical outcomes (stroke<30 days post-procedural, myocardial infarction, and death) and capture changes in health status and QoL to help inform treatment decisions.

Background This study evaluated public preferences for the treatment processes for abdominal aortic aneurysm repair in order to allow them to be incorporated into a cost‐effectiveness analysis. Methods This was a telephone survey using a trade‐off method in UK resident adults (aged at least 18 years) with no previous diagnosis of a vascular condition. Results Some 167 of 209 participants (79·9 per cent) stated that they would prefer endovascular aneurysm repair (EVAR), 40 (19·1 per cent) preferred open surgery and two (1·0 per cent) stated no preference. Participants preferred EVAR because of the less invasive nature of the intervention and quicker recovery. Participants preferring open surgery cited reasons such as having a single follow‐up appointment, and a procedure that felt more permanent. When participants were asked to make a sacrifice in order to have their preferred treatment, 122 (58·4 per cent) favoured EVAR, 18 (8·6 per cent) favoured open surgery and 69 (33·0 per cent) had no preference. Those preferring EVAR were willing to give up a mean of 0·135 expected quality‐adjusted life‐years (QALYs) to have EVAR, compared with a willingness to give up 0·033 expected QALYs among those preferring open repair. Conclusion These results indicate a clear preference for EVAR over open surgery for aortic aneurysm.