Background: Cocaine is a risk factor for acute kidney injury and chronic kidney disease with progression to end-stage renal disease. Levamisole is an adulterant that is added to cocaine to enhance its euphoric effects. Levamisole-adulterated cocaine (LAC) is associated with the distinct clinical syndromes of agranulocytosis, leukocytoclastic vasculitis, cocaine-induced midline destructive lesions (CIMDL), and ANCA-associated vasculitis (AAV) with pauci-immune necrotizing glomerulonephritis. Methods: We reviewed all cases of AAV secondary to LAC at our institution. Results: We report 3 cases of AAV secondary to LAC and associated membranous nephropathy (MN). The first and second cases are concurrent AAV secondary to LAC and associated MN while the third case involves the development of MN after AAV secondary to LAC. Conclusions: Clinicians should be aware of this novel association of LAC with MN.

♦ BACKGROUND: Information related to the microbiology of peritonitis is critical to the optimal management of patients receiving peritoneal dialysis (PD). The goal was to characterize the microbiological etiology and antimicrobial susceptibilities of PD-related peritonitis (PDRP) from 2005 to 2014, inclusive. ♦ METHODS: The distribution of organisms in culture-positive PDRP was described for new episodes and relapse infections, and further detailed for monomicrobial and polymicrobial peritonitis. Annual and overall rates of PDRP were also characterized. Antimicrobial susceptibility rates were calculated for the most common and significant organisms. ♦ RESULTS: We identified 539 episodes of PDRP including 501 new and 38 relapse infections. New episodes of peritonitis were associated with a single organism in 85% of cases, and 44% of those involved staphylococci. Polymicrobial PDRP was more likely to involve gram-negative organisms, observed in 58% versus 24% of monomicrobial infections. Antimicrobial resistance was relatively stable from 2005 to 2014. Methicillin resistance was present in 57% of and 20% of other coagulase-negative staphylococci. Methicillin-resistant (MRSA) accounted for only 11% of peritonitis compared with 2% in our previous study of PDRP from 1991 to 1998. Ciprofloxacin resistance in increased from 3% in our previous study to 24% in 2005 - 2014. ♦ CONCLUSIONS: This study characterizes important differences in the distribution of organisms in new episodes of PDRP and relapse infections, as well as monomicrobial versus polymicrobial peritonitis. It also shows relatively stable rates of antimicrobial resistance from 2005 to 2014, but some increases compared with our previous study.

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