Infection Probability Index: Implementation of an Automated Chronic Wound Infection Marker

The number of people suffering from chronic wounds is increasing due to demographic changes and the global epidemics of obesity and diabetes. Innovative imaging techniques within the field of chronic wound diagnostics are required to improve wound care by predicting and detecting wound infections to accelerate the application of treatments. For this reason, the infection probability index (IPI) is introduced as a novel infection marker based on thermal wound imaging. To improve usability, the IPI was implemented to automate scoring. Visual and thermal image pairs of 60 wounds were acquired to test the implemented algorithms on clinical data. The proposed process consists of (1) determining various parameters of the IPI based on medical hypotheses, (2) acquiring data, (3) extracting camera distortions using camera calibration, and (4) preprocessing and (5) automating segmentation of the wound to calculate (6) the IPI. Wound segmentation is reviewed by user input, whereas the segmented area can be refined manually. Furthermore, in addition to proof of concept, IPIs’ correlation with C-reactive protein (CRP) levels as a clinical infection marker was evaluated. Based on average CRP levels, the patients were clustered into two groups, on the basis of the separation value of an averaged CRP level of 100. We calculated the IPIs of the 60 wound images based on automated wound segmentation. Average runtime was less than a minute. In the group with lower average CRP, a correlation between IPI and CRP was evident.

Persistence of Anti-ZIKV-IgG over Time Is Not a Useful Congenital Infection Marker in Infants Born to ZIKV-Infected Mothers: The NATZIG Cohort

Confirming ZIKV congenital infection is challenging because viral RNA is infrequently detected. We compared the presence of anti-ZIKV-IgM and the persistence of anti-ZIKV-IgG antibodies over 18 months in two cohorts of infants born to ZIKV-infected mothers: Cohort one: 30 infants with typical microcephaly or major brain abnormalities (Congenital Zika Syndrome-CZS); Cohort two: 123 asymptomatic infants. Serum samples obtained within 6 months of age were tested for anti-ZIKV-IgM. Anti-ZIKV-IgG was quantified in sequential samples collected at birth, 3–6 weeks, 3, 6, 12, and 18 months. ZIKV-RNA was never detected postnatally. Anti-ZIKV-IgM antibodies were detected at least once in 15/25 (60.0%; 95%CI: 38.7–78.9) infants with CZS and in 2/115 (1.7%; 95%CI: 0.2–6.1) asymptomatic infants. Although anti-ZIKV-IgG was always positive within 3–6 weeks of age, IgG levels decreased similarly over time in both cohorts. IgG levels decreased similarly in ZIKV-IgM-positive and ZIKV-IgM-negative CZS infants. Differently from other congenital infections, IgM would fail to diagnose 40% of severely symptomatic infants, and the persistence of IgG is not a useful marker for discriminating congenital infection among infants exposed to maternal ZIKV infection.

Procalcitonin and White Blood Cells as an Infection Marker in Children with Diabetic Ketoacidosis

Introduction: Diabetic ketoacidosis (DKA), an acute complication of type 1 (insulin dependent) diabetes mellitus (T1DM), can be precipitated by infection. Procalcitonin (PCT) is an accurate marker of bacteremia, sepsis, and inflammation, however white blood cells (WBC) are still often used by clinicians. We aimed to analyze PCT levels and WBC counts in children with DKA.Methods: A cross-sectional study was conducted in Dr. Soetomo General Hospital, Surabaya, Indonesia, between 2015 and 2019. T1DM and DKA diagnosis was based on the International Society for Pediatric and Adolescent Diabetes. PCT levels and WBC counts were measured in samples from patients with and without DKA, and were compared using the Mann-Whitney test.Results: A total of 41 samples were included, with 15 samples (36.6%) from children with DKA, and 26 (63.4%) from children without DKA. PCT levels and WBC counts were significantly higher in those with DKA (p<0.001). The receiver operating characteristic curve analysis of WBC was lower than PCT (0.849 vs. 0.982). PCT had a higher sensitivity and spesificity as an infection marker than WBC (93.3 vs. 86.7; 92.3 vs. 88.5, respectively).Conclusion: PCT is a better infection marker in children with DKA than WBC

Nanobiosensor Technology

Nanobiosensor explore centers around creating innovations that can make huge commitments in the zones of human and infection marker location, promising environmental remediation, nano-and biomaterials portrayal, and biocatalyst advancement. These innovations appear as nanometrically designed with improved functionality and characteristics to be employed in a diverse array of applications.