Haemophili are representative microbiota of the upper respiratory tract. The aim of this study was to assess the effects of perioperative antimicrobial prophylaxis and/or postoperative treatment on Haemophilus parainfluenzae prevalence, and antimicrobial sensitivity in short-term hospitalized patients with lung cancer who underwent surgery. Samples were collected from 30 short-term hospitalized patients with lung cancer and from 65 healthy people. The nasal and throat specimens were taken twice from each patient: before (EI, Examination I), on the fourth/fifth day (EII, Examination II) after surgery, and once from healthy people. The isolates identification and antimicrobial susceptibility were detected by routine diagnostic methods. H. parainfluenzae was found in throat specimens of 42/65 (64.6 %) healthy people, while in 19/30 (63.3 %) lung cancer patients in EI (p = 0.6203) and in 13/30 (43.3 %) ones in EII (p = 0.0106). Neither the disease itself nor short-term hospitalization with perioperative prophylaxis alone affected H. parainfluenzae prevalence in EII, while perioperative prophylaxis with postoperative treatment significantly decreased its colonization in EII. The differences in the number of patients colonized by Candida spp. in EI and in EII were observed (p = 0.0082).Totally, 23/58 (39.7 %) of H. parainfluenzae isolates were resistant mainly to beta-lactams; among 11 ampicillin-resistant isolates only 3 were beta-lactamase positive. The antimicrobial perioperative prophylaxis together with postoperative treatment may disturb the composition of the airways microbiota represented by H. parainfluenzae, in addition to selecting the resistant strains of bacteria and promoting yeasts colonization in lung cancer patients undergoing surgery.

Healthy condition and chronic diseases may be associated with microbiota composition and its properties. The prevalence of respiratory haemophili with respect to their phenotypes including the ability to biofilm formation in patients with sarcoidosis was assayed. Nasopharynx and sputum specimens were taken in 31 patients with sarcoidosis (average age 42.6 ± 13), and nasopharynx specimens were taken in 37 healthy people (average age 44.6 ± 11.6). Haemophili were identified by API-NH microtest and by the matrix-assisted laser desorption/ionization time-of-flight mass spectrometry (MALDI-TOF MS) system. Biofilm was visualised by crystal violet staining and confocal scanning laser microscopy (CSLM). The statistical analysis was performed with Statgraphics Plus for Windows. In total, 30/31 patients with sarcoidosis and 31/37 healthy people were colonized by Haemophilus influenzae (6/30 vs. 1/31) and Haemophilus parainfluenzae (28/30 vs. 31/31) in the nasopharynx. The overall number of nasopharyngeal haemophili isolates was 59 in patients with sarcoidosis and 67 in healthy volunteers (H. influenzae 6/59 vs. 1/67, P = 0.05; H. parainfluenzae 47/59 vs. 65/67, P = 0.0032). Moreover, the decreased number of H. parainfluenzae biofilm-producing isolates was shown in nasopharyngeal samples in patients with sarcoidosis as compared to healthy people (19/31 vs. 57/65, P = 0.006), especially with respect to isolates classified as strong and very strong biofilm-producers (8/31 vs. 39/65, P = 0.002). The obtained data suggest that the qualitative and quantitative changes within the respiratory microbiota concerning the overall prevalence of H. influenzae together with the decreased number of H. parainfluenzae strains and the decreased rate of H. parainfluenzae biofilm-producing isolates as compared to healthy people may be associated with sarcoidosis.

The pain experienced by paediatric patients is rarely evaluated in emergency departments. The aim of the present study was to compare the degree of conformity in patients’ pain severity when assessed by themselves (if possible), their parents and a triage nurse trained in pain evaluation. Methods: A cross-sectional observational study was conducted at a tertiary paediatric emergency department in Eastern Poland involving children (aged six months to eighteen years), their parents and nurses. The patients had their pain assessed while collecting a medical history. For children ≥ four years of age, the Numerical Rate Scale was used by patients, parents and nurses to evaluate pain. Patients under four years of age were evaluated by parents and nurses using the FLACC scale. Results: Eighty patients and their parents were enrolled in the study. For children ≥ four years, patients rated their pain significantly higher than both their parents (p = 0.03) and nurses (p < 0.001), with the latter group producing the lowest scores. For children under four years of age, parental pain assessments did not significantly differ from those of nurses. Conclusion: Compared to the patients themselves and their parents, nurses tended to assign lower pain scores for children. Pain should be assessed on admission to the ED and, whenever possible, by the patients themselves.

Introduction: Air pollution is one of the most important issues of our times. Air quality assessment is based on the measurement of the concentration of substances formed during the combustion process and micro-particles suspended in the air in the form of an aerosol. Microscopic atmospheric...