COMBACTE at ECCMID 2021
The 31st European Congress of Clinical Microbiology & Infectious Diseases (ECCMID), will take place on 9 – 12 July 2021. This time, ECCMID will be held in a completely different setting than what we've been used to, all of course due to the current COVID-19 pandemic. This is the first time the event will take place in summer, completely virtually.
Last year a record number of COMBACTE abstracts were submitted to the conference, but were not presented as ECCMID was cancelled. This year we are proud to announce that 19 COMBACTE abstracts have been accepted for presentation at the conference: 6 from COMBACTE-NET, 10 from COMBACTE-MAGNET, 1 from COMBACTE-CARE and 2 from COMBACTE-CDI. More information about them will follow.
A lots of science has been produced in COMBACTE as several of our studies completed recruitment and the first results have been issued. We are very much looking forward to share this science with the online attendees at the 31st ECCMID.
Darren Troeman's Abstract on S. aureus Infection
Darren Troeman is the coordinating investigator of COMBACTE-NET’s ASPIRE-SSI study, and also a PhD-candidate at the University Medical Center Utrecht. Darren’s research focuses on healthcare-associated infections, primarily surgical site and bloodstream infections, caused by the bacterium Staphylococcus aureus.
“In the ASPIRE-SSI study, which was a multicenter, European, prospective observational study, we included S. aureus colonized and non-colonized surgical patients undergoing different kinds of surgical procedures, and followed these patients for up to 90 days post-surgery to assess primarily whether they would develop postoperative infections with S. aureus.
The research that I will be presenting at this year’s ECCMID focuses on whether the risk of postoperative S. aureus infections increases as the number of body regions colonized with S. aureus increases, and whether being colonized at other regions than the nose with S. aureus, also independently increases the risk of developing postoperative S. aureus infections.
When I heard that my abstract was accepted for an oral session I was thrilled. This is not the first abstract that I have submitted to ECCMID, but it is the first time that I will be presenting at ECCMID. I secretly hoped that the intended hybrid conference would take place. However, it was decided that ECCMID would be fully online this year. It’s a pity, but it’s better to be safe than sorry. The good thing is that I can follow ECCMID this year from the comfort of my home.
I am excited, are you? See you at ECCMID 2021!”
P. aeruginosa HCAI in Critically Ill - Claudia Recanatini
“I think that having a fully virtual conference is the best option for this year; it would allow all the participants from different countries to share experiences and knowledge in an equal way. I will miss the social interaction, which would not be the same as in a face-to-face event, but I expect the value of the scientific talks to be high as usual. I am confident that the organization will make it a very enjoyable and engaging experience for all the participants. I am looking forward to it!
The topic of the abstract that I will be presenting at ECCMID 2021 concerns healthcare associated infections in critically ill patients caused by Pseudomonas aeruginosa. Specifically, the objectives of my research are to assess the incidence of P. aeruginosa ICU pneumonia and quantify its association with P. aeruginosa colonization at different body sites. For this analysis, we used data from ASPIRE-ICU, a prospective observational cohort study enrolling 2000 subjects across 30 European ICUs. The description of the association between colonization and the subsequent risk of acquiring pneumonia in ICU would support the development of investigational products to prevent infections by reducing the colonization load in high risk patients”.
Preliminary Data from ASPIRE-ICU - Jelle Vlaeminck
“This is the third time I will present an abstract at ECCMID, which unfortunately will take place online. I would have preferred connecting with other researchers on site but considering the current epidemiological situation, this is for the better. In my abstract I share some preliminary data from the ASPIRE-ICU study where we show that only nasal screening misses quite some S. aureus pneumonias in ICU-admitted patients. Additional lower respiratory tract screening could help prevent this. Also, we compared screening and infecting isolates on a genetic level and see that they are closely related”.
In over eight years COMBACTE has reached numerous milestones. Our network is ever growing and counts over 1000 hospitals and 800 laboratories. A great load of results from the consortium have also been put forth, and significant progress made with more than 30,000 patients enrolled in our trials.
Make sure you keep informed through our website, Twitter or LinkedIn and the latest updates on our presence at ECCMID 2021.
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