Researchers conducted a statewide survey of all patients on breathing machines in hospitals and long-term care facilities and found that a significant percentage of them harbored two pathogens known to be life-threatening in those with compromised immune systems. One pathogen, Acinetobacter baumannii, was identified in nearly 31 percent of all patients on ventilators to assist with their breathing; Candida auris was identified in nearly 7 percent of patients on ventilators, according to the study.
Read more …Statewide prevalence data on two new emerging pathogens in healthcare settings
Fecal microbe transplants from healthy donors can treat patients with recurrent Clostridium difficile infections. However, after tens of thousands transplants, little was known about which donor strains provide long-term engraftment, and which engraft early after the transplant. Most failures of fecal microbe transplantation occur in the first four weeks. Researchers have now found 19 Bacteroides vulgatus genes that were unique to three strains that show early engraftment in patients after a fecal transplant, as opposed to seven strains that did not show early engraftment.
Read more …Fecal microbe transplants: B. vulgatus genes that correlate with early colonization
To examine the global state of AI ethics, a team of researchers performed a systematic review and meta-analysis of global guidelines for AI use. The researchers found that while most of the guidelines valued Privacy, Transparency, and Accountability, very few valued Truthfulness, Intellectual Property, or Children's Rights. Additionally, most of the guidelines described ethical principles and values without proposing practical methods for implementing them, and without pushing for legally binding regulation.
Read more …Researchers measure global consensus over the ethical use of AI