Background. Diabetic foot infections (DFIs) are a major public health issue and identification of the microorganisms causing such polymicrobial infections is useful to find out appropriate antibiotic therapy. Meanwhile, many reports have shown antibiotic resistance rising dramatically. In the present study, we sought to determine the prevalence of microorganisms detected on culture in complicated DFIs in hospitalized patients and their antibiotic sensitivity profiles. Methods. A cross-sectional study was conducted for a period of 24 months from 2012 to 2014 in Nemazee Hospital, Shiraz, Iran. The demographic and clinical features of the patients were obtained. Antimicrobial susceptibility testing to different agents was carried out using the disc diffusion method. Results. During this period, 122 aerobic microorganisms were isolated from DFIs. Among Gram-positive and Gram-negative bacteria, Staphylococcus spp. and E. coli were the most frequent organisms isolated, respectively. Of the isolates, 91% were multidrug while 78% of S. aureus isolates were methicillin resistant. 53% of Gram-negative bacteria were positive for extended-spectrum β-lactamase. Conclusion. Given the involvement of different microorganisms and emergence of multidrug resistant strains, clinicians are advised to consider culture before initiation of empirical therapy.

Urinary tract infection (UTI) is one of the most common bacterial infections in pediatrics. Delay in diagnosis and treatment can cause significant morbidity. The physician's knowledge regarding the symptoms, microorganisms that caused UTI, and effective antibiotics in a geographical area can help them to select the appropriate antibiotics. This study was performed to determine the prevalence of bacteria that cause UTI and their susceptibility to common antibiotics as well as the common symptoms and associated factors in children of Shiraz, Southern Iran.This cross sectional study was performed among 202 children with UTI, aged 2 months to 18 years old, between August and November 2014 in pediatric medical centers of Shiraz University of Medical Sciences. Urine samples were collected using urinary catheter or suprapubic in children < 2 years and mid-stream in children over 2 years, respectively. The type of micro-organisms causing UTI was determined and evaluation of antibiotic susceptibility for each organism was assayed by the Kirby Bauer method using antibiogram test. Patient's information was collected through checking the medical documents and interview with parents.Our results showed that the frequency of UTI was significantly higher in girls (70.3%) than in boys. The most commonly discovered pathogens were Escherichia coli (E coli) (51.5%), followed by Klebsiella spp. (16.8%), and Enterococcus spp. (9.9%). Overall susceptibility test showed the highest resistance to ampicillin (81.2%) and cotrimoxazole (79.2%), and the highest sensitivity to imipenem (90.1%) and Gentamicin (65.3%). Gram negative and positive bacteria showed the highest antibiotic resistance to amoxicillin (83.8%) and clindamycin (100%), respectively. In addition, production of extended spectrum beta lactamase (ESBL) was 69.2% and 30.8% in E coli and Kelebsiella respectively.The efficacy of third generation of the cephalosporins was reduced because of the high rate of production of ESBL and drug resistance. These results inform the physician as to which antibiotics are appropriate to prescribe for the patient, as well as urine culture reports and following the patient's clinical response so that high antimicrobial resistance is not developed at the community level.

Please cite this paper as: Ziyaeyan et al. (2012) Pandemic 2009 influenza A H1N1 infection among 2009 Hajj Pilgrims from Southern Iran: a real‐time RT‐PCR‐based study. Influenza and Other Respiratory Viruses 6(601), e80–e84. Background  Hajj is a mass gathering undertaken annually in Mecca, Saudi Arabia. The 2009 Hajj coincided with both the pandemic influenza A/H1N1 2009 (A(H1N1)pdm09) and seasonal types of influenza A viruses. The interaction between pandemic influenza and Hajj could cause both a high level of mortality among the pilgrims and the spread of infection in their respective countries upon their return home. Objective  The present study attempted to determine the point prevalence of A(H1N1)pdm09 among returning Iranian pilgrims, most of whom had been vaccinated for seasonal influenza but not A(H1N1)pdm09. Methods  Pharyngeal swabs were collected from 305 pilgrims arriving at the airport in Shiraz, Iran. RNA was extracted from the samples and A(H1N1)pdm09 and other seasonal influenza A viruses were detected using TaqMan real‐time PCR. For A(H1N1)pdm09‐positive samples, the sensitivity to oseltamivir was also evaluated. Results  Subjects included 132 (43·3%) men and 173 (56·7%) women, ranging in age from 24 to 65 years. The A(H1N1)pdm09 virus was detected in five (1·6%) pilgrims and other influenza A viruses in eight (2·6%). All the A(H1N1)pdm09 were sensitive to oseltamivir. Conclusions  Only five cases were found to be positive for A(H1N1)pdm09, and it seems unlikely that the arrival of infected pilgrims to their homelands would cause an outbreak of a new wave of infection there. Thus, the low morbidity and mortality rates among the pilgrims could be attributed to the characteristics of A(H1N1)pdm09, which causes morbidity and mortality in a way similar to the seasonal influenza infections, absence of high‐risk individuals among the Iranian pilgrims, and the instructions given to them about contact and hand hygiene, and respiratory etiquette.

Visceral leishmaniasis (VL), caused by Leishmania infantum, is endemic in southern Iran. To detect asymptomatic individuals, we used kinetoplast DNA (kDNA) polymerase chain reaction (PCR)-ELISA methods on 388 blood samples of healthy persons in two endemic loci and compared the results with the leishmanin skin test (LST) and the immunofluorescent antibody test (IFAT). kDNA PCR, LST, and IFAT were positive in 95 (24.5%), 132 (34%), and 212 (54.6%) cases, respectively. Fifty-five (21.4%) individuals that were LST negative were PCR positive. All PCR-positive individuals had a titer of >or=1:20, whereas 45% of those that were IFAT positive were PCR positive. For a reliable index of prevalence rate of infection, LST alone is not sufficient and needs to be accompanied by PCR-ELISA. The high rate of kDNA-positive results may indicate the possibility of humans being a reservoir and source of transmission. In endemic areas, kDNA PCR-ELISA is not a reliable test for the diagnosis of active VL.

Aseptic meningitis refers to a clinical syndrome of meningeal inflammation in which bacteria cannot be identified in the cerebrospinal fluid (CSF). The viral etiology and the epidemiological, clinical, and laboratory characteristics of aseptic meningitis among children aged 2 months to 15 years in Shiraz, southern Iran were determined. From May 2007 to April 2008, 65 patients were admitted to the hospital with aseptic meningitis. Seven viruses, non-polio human enteroviruses, mumps virus, herpes simplex virus (HSV), varicella-zoster virus (VZV), human cytomegalovirus (HCMV), human herpes virus type 6 (HHV-6), and Epstein-Barr virus (EBV) were investigated by polymerase chain reaction (PCR) method. Viruses were detected in 30 (46.2%) patients in whom non-polio human enterovirus and mumps virus were detected in 13 (43.3%) and 11 (36.7%), respectively. The remaining 6 (20%) of the cases were caused by HSV, VZV, HCMV, and HHV-6. Haemophilus influenzae and non-polio human enterovirus were detected in one patient simultaneously. Viral meningitis was found to be more frequent during spring and summer. The majority (66.6%) of the patients were treated in the hospital for 10 days and had received antibiotics in the case of bacterial meningitis. Rapid diagnosis of viral meningitis using PCR testing of CSF can help shorten hospitalization, and avoid the unnecessary use of antibiotics.

We report a case visceral leishmaniasis with disseminated cutaneous leishmaniasis caused by Leishmania tropica in southern Iran. Typing of this parasite was performed by a species-specific polymerase chain reaction and isoenzyme electrophoresis.

This study was conducted to find the etiology of acute diarrhea in Iranian children and determine the antimicrobial resistance patterns. The pathogenic bacteria were recovered from 110/269 (40.9%) diarrheal fecal samples with the following profiles: the most predominant pathogen was diarrheagenic Escherichia coli (DEC) (43.6%), comprising enteroaggregative E. coli (23.6%), enteropathogenic E. coli (10.9%), enteroinvasive E. coli (5.5%), and enterotoxigenic E. coli (3.6%); Shigella spp. (37.3%), Salmonella spp. (12.7%) and Campylobacter jejuni (6.4%) were ranked second and fourth in terms of prevalence, respectively. The rates of extended-spectrum beta-lactamase (ESBL) production were 66.7% and 53.7% in DEC and Shigella, respectively. Resistance to ampicillin (AMP) (95.1%), trimethoprim/sulfamethoxazole (SXT) (73.2%), azithromycin (ATH) (21.9%), and ciprofloxacin (CIP) (14.6%) was observed among Shigella isolates. Multidrug resistance phenotype was observed in 24.4% (10/41) of Shigella isolates, with the most common pattern of resistance to cefotaxime, ceftriaxone, ceftazidime, AMP, SXT, and ATH. This study indicates an alarming increase in the ESBL production of DEC and Shigella spp. and identifies them as the two most prevalent diarrhea-causing enteropathogens in the region. The results show that CIP could be an alternative to third-generation cephalosporins against these two pathogens. Therefore, it is proposed that further investigation be done in the pursuit of alternative antibiotics that are effective against the resistant cases. For instance, one study could look into the comparative clinical effectiveness of third-generation cephalosporins versus CIP, the latter not being presently the drug of choice for the treatment of acute diarrhea in children in Iran.

A high proportion of hospitalized children received prophylactic BSAs. This represents a clear target for quality improvement. Collectively speaking, it is critical to reduce total prophylactic prescribing, BSA use, and prolonged prescription.