Agreed-upon procedures report on the City of Sidney, Iowa for the period July 1, 2013 through June 30, 2014

Agreed-upon procedures report on the City of Sidney, Iowa for the period July 1, 2013 through June 30, 2014

Agreed-upon procedures report on the City of Monroe, Iowa for the period July 1, 2013 through June 30, 2014

Agreed-upon procedures report on the City of Monroe, Iowa for the period July 1, 2013 through June 30, 2014

Agreed-upon procedures report on the City of Lambs Grove, Iowa for the period August 1, 2013 through July 31, 2014

Agreed-upon procedures report on the City of Lambs Grove, Iowa for the period August 1, 2013 through July 31, 2014

Agreed-upon procedures report on the City of Dallas Center, Iowa for the period July 1, 2013 through June 30, 2014

Agreed-upon procedures report on the City of Dallas Center, Iowa for the period July 1, 2013 through June 30, 2014

Agreed-upon procedures report on the City of Derby, Iowa for the period August 1, 2013 through July 31, 2014

Agreed-upon procedures report on the City of Derby, Iowa for the period August 1, 2013 through July 31, 2014

Agreed-upon procedures report on the City of Stanwood, Iowa for the period November 1, 2013 through October 31, 2014

Agreed-upon procedures report on the City of Stanwood, Iowa for the period November 1, 2013 through October 31, 2014

Agreed-upon procedures report on the City of Harper, Iowa for the period November 1, 2013 through October 31, 2014

Agreed-upon procedures report on the City of Harper, Iowa for the period November 1, 2013 through October 31, 2014

Agreed-upon procedures report on the City of Brayton, Iowa for the period September 1, 2013 through August 31, 2014

Agreed-upon procedures report on the City of Brayton, Iowa for the period September 1, 2013 through August 31, 2014

Agreed-upon procedures report on the City of Hamburg, Iowa for the period July 1, 2013 through June 30, 2014

Agreed-upon procedures report on the City of Hamburg, Iowa for the period July 1, 2013 through June 30, 2014

Agreed-upon procedures report on the City of Mechanicsville, Iowa for the period July 1, 2013 through June 30, 2014

Agreed-upon procedures report on the City of Mechanicsville, Iowa for the period July 1, 2013 through June 30, 2014

Agreed-upon procedures report on the City of Manly, Iowa for the period July 1, 2013 through June 30, 2014

Agreed-upon procedures report on the City of Manly, Iowa for the period July 1, 2013 through June 30, 2014

Agreed-upon procedures report on the City of Lone Rock, Iowa for the period July 1, 2013 through June 30, 2014

Agreed-upon procedures report on the City of Lone Rock, Iowa for the period July 1, 2013 through June 30, 2014

Optimal culture incubation time in orthopedic device-associated infections: a retrospective analysis of prolonged 14-day incubation.

Accurate diagnosis of orthopedic device-associated infections can be challenging. Culture of tissue biopsy specimens is often considered the gold standard; however, there is currently no consensus on the ideal incubation time for specimens. The aim of our study was to assess the yield of a 14-day incubation protocol for tissue biopsy specimens from revision surgery (joint replacements and internal fixation devices) in a general orthopedic and trauma surgery setting. Medical records were reviewed retrospectively in order to identify cases of infection according to predefined diagnostic criteria. From August 2009 to March 2012, 499 tissue biopsy specimens were sampled from 117 cases. In 70 cases (59.8%), at least one sample showed microbiological growth. Among them, 58 cases (82.9%) were considered infections and 12 cases (17.1%) were classified as contaminations. The median time to positivity in the cases of infection was 1 day (range, 1 to 10 days), compared to 6 days (range, 1 to 11 days) in the cases of contamination (P < 0.001). Fifty-six (96.6%) of the infection cases were diagnosed within 7 days of incubation. In conclusion, the results of our study show that the incubation of tissue biopsy specimens beyond 7 days is not productive in a general orthopedic and trauma surgery setting. Prolonged 14-day incubation might be of interest in particular situations, however, in which the prevalence of slow-growing microorganisms and anaerobes is higher.

ECIL-3 classical diagnostic procedures for the diagnosis of invasive fungal diseases in patients with leukaemia.

Invasive fungal diseases (IFDs) continue to cause considerable morbidity and mortality in patients with haematological malignancy. Diagnosis of IFD is difficult, with the sensitivity of the gold standard tests (culture and histopathology) often reported to be low, which may at least in part be due to sub-optimal sampling or subsequent handling in the routine microbiological laboratory. Therefore, a working group of the European Conference in Infections in Leukaemia was convened in 2009 with the task of reviewing the classical diagnostic procedures and providing recommendations for their optimal use. The recommendations were presented and approved at the ECIL-3 conference in September 2009. Although new serological and molecular tests are examined in separate papers, this review focuses on sample types, microscopy and culture procedures, antifungal susceptibility testing and imaging. The performance and limitations of these procedures are discussed and recommendations are provided on when and how to use them and how to interpret the results.

Agreed-upon procedures report on the City of Ely, Iowa for the period July 1, 2013 through June 30, 2014

Agreed-upon procedures report on the City of Ely, Iowa for the period July 1, 2013 through June 30, 2014