Wheat, L. Joseph

Objective The objective of this study was to determine whether a triple therapy regimen incorporating twice-daily saquinavir is as effective as a three-times daily regimen. Methods This was an open-label, Phase III, multicentre, 48-week study involving 837 HIV-1-infected patients randomised to one of the following: saquinavir soft gel capsule (SGC) 1200 mg three-times daily, plus two nucleoside reverse transcriptase inhibitors (NRTIs) (arm A); saquinavir SGC 1600 mg twice-daily, plus two NRTIs (arm B); saquinavir SGC 1200 mg twice-daily and nelfinavir 1250 mg twice-daily, plus a single NRTI (arm C). The primary outcome measure was the virological response in arm A versus B and in arm A versus C with respect to the percentage of patients whose plasma HIV-1 RNA levels fell below the level of quantification for the Amplicor assay (<400 copies/ml) at weeks 24 and 48. Results At 48 weeks, the percentage of patients with plasma HIV-1 RNA levels <400 copies/ml was 47.1% (arm A), 45.3% (arm B) and 42.7% (arm C) in the intention-to-treat analysis. The treatment difference between arm B–arm A was -1.8% (95% confidence intervals -10.1, 6.5) and for arm C–arm A was -4.5% (95% confidence intervals -12.7, 3.7) in the intention-to-treat analysis. These differences fell within the maximum allowable difference (±12%) for arm B compared with arm A. At week 24, the percentage of patients with HIV-1 RNA levels <400 copies/ml was 59.6% (arm A), 57.6% (arm B) and 51.3% (arm C). Conclusions A twice-daily triple therapy regimen incorporating saquinavir SGC plus two NRTIs was of equivalent efficacy to the three-times daily regimen studied. All regimens were generally well tolerated.

ABSTRACT Piperacillin-tazobactam (PTZ) is known to cause false-positive results in the Platelia Aspergillus enzyme-linked immunoassay (EIA), due to contamination with galactomannan (GM). We tested 32 lots of PTZ and 27 serum specimens from patients receiving PTZ. GM was not detected in the lots of PTZ; one serum specimen (3.7%) was positive. PTZ formulations commonly used in the United States today appear to be a rare cause for false-positive GM results.

Abstract:Post‐transplantation histoplasmosis may be acquired via inhalation, may result from endogenous reactivation, or may be derived from the allograft. The Histoplasma and Aspergillus enzyme‐linked immunoassays are increasingly being relied upon for rapid diagnosis of fungal infections, especially in immunocompromised patients. We describe 4 cases of solid organ transplant recipients who had histoplasmosis and a falsely positive Aspergillus galactomannan (GM) obtained from the serum or bronchoalveolar lavage (BAL) fluid. We also report our experience, testing for Histoplasma antigen (Ag) in specimens positive for Aspergillus GM. From January 2007 through December 2010, of 2432 unique patients who had positive Aspergillus GM tests, 514 (21%) were tested for Histoplasma Ag, and 27 were found to be positive. Most specimens that tested positive for both Aspergillus and Histoplasma were obtained by BAL. False‐positive tests for Aspergillus GM can occur in immunosuppressed patients who have histoplasmosis, and may obscure the correct diagnosis.

ABSTRACT In a retrospective review of 24 patients with histoplasmosis, blastomycosis, or coccidioidomycosis treated with voriconazole (most for salvage therapy), the outcome was favorable (improved or stable) for 22 (95.8%) within 2 months of starting voriconazole and for 20 (83.3%) at the last follow-up. Prospective studies are required to determine its role in the treatment of endemic mycoses.