Mount Sinai researchers have enhanced hospital screening protocols for an often drug-resistant fungal pathogen that the Centers for Disease Control and Prevention considers an urgent global health threat. The latest guidelines, published in a review Oct. 31, could promote early detection of harmful fungi in high-risk patients and forestall hospital outbreaks.
Emerging in New York City in 2016 is a fungus that may cause bleeding, sores and ear infections. It can affect the complete body and cause serious complications, especially in patients with weakened immune systems. The fungal pathogen may also spread easily in healthcare settings because it might survive for weeks on contaminated surfaces or medical equipment.
Mount Sinai specialists have implemented an expanded hospital admission screening protocol to screen all inpatients who had resided in a nursing home inside one month prior to admission, no matter their specific There are risk aspects. This enhanced screening was a change from previous practices that usually varied amongst health care facilities and screened only those with more obvious risk aspects, comparable to patients with a tracheostomy or on a ventilator.
“Our findings demonstrate an important advance in infection prevention and patient safety, particularly in skilled nursing facility transfers,” said corresponding writer Waleed Javed, MD, MBA, MS, professor of medication ( infectious diseases) on the Icahn School of Medicine at Mount Sinai. and Director of Infection Prevention and Control at Mount Sinai Downtown. “The response requires vigilance, rapid diagnosis, appropriate treatment, and strict infection control protocols to limit its spread in healthcare facilities.”
In a retrospective review, researchers screened all 591 patients admitted to Mount Sinai Brooklyn from a nursing home from January 2022 to September 2023. Period before screening changes. The experts found that 14 cases, or 2.4 percent of the cohort, tested positive. Nine cases were considered high risk on the time of screening, while five cases were considered low risk. Ultimately, the newly expanded screening identified eight cases that had not been diagnosed under the previous protocol. More cases were caught early, enabling the Mount Sinai team to quickly implement appropriate isolation, contact and disinfection precautions to stop further spread.
Study co-author Scott Lorin, MD, MBA, president of Mount Sinai Brooklyn and associate professor of medication (pulmonary, critical care and sleep medicine) said, “Our study encourages hospitals to improve their infection control practices. Supports the need to adopt expanded screening protocols.” Icahn at Mount Sinai. “Widespread screening not only identifies cases early, but also allows for targeted preventive measures, reducing the risk of hospital-acquired outbreaks. Active protocols based on community prevalence rates Enforcement may be an important means of controlling the spread of this emerging global health threat.”