No abstract

Background SARS-CoV-2 is associated with a severe inflammatory response contributing to respiratory and systemic manifestations, morbidity, and mortality in patients with coronavirus disease 2019 (COVID-19). Methods Tocilizumab (TCZ) efficacy on mortality and length of hospital stay was retrospectively evaluated in patients who received TCZ and compared with that in controls with a similar severity of COVID-19. The primary endpoint was survival probability on day 28. The secondary endpoints included survival at day 14 and length of hospital stay. Results Of the 148 patients included in the study, 62 received TCZ and standard of care, whereas 86 served as a control group and received only standard of care. The two groups were similar, although TCZ-treated patients were more likely to exhibit hypertension (46.7% vs. 29.8%), chronic kidney disease (14.5% vs. 1.1%), and high Charlson score (1.18 vs. 1.00; p = 0.006) and less likely to receive corticosteroid treatment (48.5% vs. 93.0%). TCZ was associated with lower mortality on both day 28 (16.1% vs. 37.2%, p = 0.004) and day 14 (9.7% vs. 24.4%, p = 0.022). The hospital stay was longer in the TCZ-treated than in the control group (15.6 ± 7.59 vs.17.7 ± 7.8 days, p = 0.103). Ten patients (16.0%) in the TCZ-treated group developed infections. Conclusion TCZ was associated with a lower likelihood of death despite resulting in higher infection rates and a non-significant longer hospital stay.

No abstract

Extra-colonic Clostridioides difficile infection is rare. Here we describe a sickle cell disease patient with avascular necrosis who presented with persistent bacteraemia due to C. difficile and septic arthritis in a native knee joint, which responded very well to medical and surgical treatment but recurred multiple times within weeks of the cessation of antibiotics.

No abstract