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The disease caused by SARS-CoV-2 is a pandemic characterized for being highly contagious and lethal in groups at risk. In less than three months, mankind had to fight against this virus without knowing its pathogenicity and therapy. We present the experience with five cases seen in the Hospital de Emergencias Villa el Salvador in Lima, Peru, and we emphasize the importance of the clinical classification of the disease in four stages: mild, moderate, severe, and critical. We reviewed the current antiviral, immunomodulatory, and antithrombotic therapy approaches. Antiviral therapy using hydroxichloroquine and azithromycin led to favorable outcomes in four cases, particularly when it was early instituted. Nonetheless, its efficacy is still controversial and results from randomized clinical trials are eagerly awaited. Meanwhile, its use during the early phases of mild or moderate disease sho...

Diseases caused by Mycobacteria are an important area within infectious diseases in mankind’s history, and since early times conditions such as tuberculosis (TB) and leprosy (Hansen’s disease) had already been described. This also holds true for diseases caused by other Mycobacteria.Tuberculosis is a mycobacterial disease caused by Mycobacteria tuberculosis complex, being Mycobacterium tuberculosis one of its most conspicuous components. This microorganism has perfected its mechanisms for survival, allowing it to develop resistance against antituberculous therapy.As it is the case for other microorganisms, the basis for M. tuberculosis resistance is the selection of mutant bacteria with innate resistance to currently available antituberculous drugs; so, by virtue of this adaptive and evolutive phenomenon, there is the emergence of a subpopulation of M. tuberculosis that is extremely re...

Tuberculosis (TB) and the human immunodeficiency virus (HIV) infection are epidemiologically linked with respect to their risk prognosis, be it for the development of TB in an HIV-infected patient or as a prognostic indicator of HIV infection. The association of TB and HIV potentiates the aggressiveness of both.The extension of HIV epidemics all over the world allowed that its interaction with tuberculosis modified the descending curve of the frequency of TB in those countries that had achieved such reduction, such as the USA. In developing countries highly endemic for TB, this interaction worsened this problem. The risk of dying because of TB in an HIV-infected patient is 2 to 4 times higher compared to that in a TB patient not infected with HIV, independently of the CD-4 lymphocyte count.

La adquisición de infecciones por patógenos que circulan por la sangre a través de accidentes punzocortantes o exposición de mucosas o piel no intacta a fluidos infectantes, constituye uno de los principales riesgos profesionales para los trabajadores de salud.Se han reportado más de 20 agentes diferentes con la capacidad de transmitirse por esta vía, dentro de los que podemos mencionar al virus de la inmunodeficiencia humana (VIH), virus de la hepatitis B (VHB), virus de la hepatitis C (VHC), virus ébola, virus del dengue, virus herpes 1 y 2, virus de la varicela, Treponema pallidum, Brucella sp, Corynebacterium, Rickettsia sp, Leptospira sp, micobacterias incluyendo tuberculosis, Mycoplasma, Babesia, Plasmodium, Toxoplasma, Cryptococcus y Blastomyces. Muchos de ellos son reportes aislados en trabajadores de salud, personal de bancos de sangre o laboratorios clínic...

Diseases caused by Mycobacteria are an important area within infectious diseases in mankind’s history, and since early times conditions such as tuberculosis (TB) and leprosy (Hansen’s disease) had already been described. This also holds true for diseases caused by other Mycobacteria.Tuberculosis is a mycobacterial disease caused by Mycobacteria tuberculosis complex, being Mycobacterium tuberculosis one of its most conspicuous components. This microorganism has perfected its mechanisms for survival, allowing it to develop resistance against antituberculous therapy.As it is the case for other microorganisms, the basis for M. tuberculosis resistance is the selection of mutant bacteria with innate resistance to currently available antituberculous drugs; so, by virtue of this adaptive and evolutive phenomenon, there is the emergence of a subpopulation of M. tuberculosis that is extremely re...

Tuberculosis (TB) and the human immunodeficiency virus (HIV) infection are epidemiologically linked with respect to their risk prognosis, be it for the development of TB in an HIV-infected patient or as a prognostic indicator of HIV infection. The association of TB and HIV potentiates the aggressiveness of both.The extension of HIV epidemics all over the world allowed that its interaction with tuberculosis modified the descending curve of the frequency of TB in those countries that had achieved such reduction, such as the USA. In developing countries highly endemic for TB, this interaction worsened this problem. The risk of dying because of TB in an HIV-infected patient is 2 to 4 times higher compared to that in a TB patient not infected with HIV, independently of the CD-4 lymphocyte count.

The disease caused by SARS-CoV-2 is a pandemic characterized for being highly contagious and lethal in groups at risk. In less than three months, mankind had to fight against this virus without knowing its pathogenicity and therapy. We present the experience with five cases seen in the Hospital de Emergencias Villa el Salvador in Lima, Peru, and we emphasize the importance of the clinical classification of the disease in four stages: mild, moderate, severe, and critical. We reviewed the current antiviral, immunomodulatory, and antithrombotic therapy approaches. Antiviral therapy using hydroxichloroquine and azithromycin led to favorable outcomes in four cases, particularly when it was early instituted. Nonetheless, its efficacy is still controversial and results from randomized clinical trials are eagerly awaited. Meanwhile, its use during the early phases of mild or moderate disease sho...

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Se presenta el caso de un paciente procedente de la selva de Perú con diagnóstico de infección por el Virus de Inmunodeficiencia Humana (VIH) con cuadro respiratorio alto, fiebre y que presentó una radiografía con patrón miliar. Por ser la Tuberculosis una enfermedad prevalente en nuestro país e infección mas frecuente en pacientes con VIH recibió tratamiento anti tuberculoso. Sin embargo, el dato histórico de haber estado en zona endémica de micosis en algún momento de su vida, asociado a exámenes de laboratorio, permitió el diagnóstico de Histoplasmosis diseminada, como producto de la reactivación de una infección latente que se manifiesta cuando el nivel de inmunidad se deprime como ocurre en los paciente infectados por el VIH. La historia de enfermedades, viajes y residencias previas es información fundamental para establecer una buena aproximación diagnóst...

Objective: this study aimed to describe the main factors associated to mortality in a cohort of patients hospitalized with SARS-CoV-2 pneumonia in a public hospital in Lima, Peru. Materials and methods: this was a retrospective cohort study, with a non-random convenience sampling. Adult patients with confirmed/suspicious SARS-CoV-2 pneumonia with rapid and/or molecular tests were included. Demographic, clinical, laboratory, tomographic and treatment variables were identified. Descriptive statistics, bivariate analysis, and Poisson regression techniques were used to determine the adjusted relative risk (aRR). Results: 122 patients were included, 70.5% were male, with a mean age of 55.8 years, with a history of obesity (25.4%) and high blood pressure (HBP, 13.1%). The multivariate analysis of clinical factors identified that age (aRR 1.03; 95% CI: 1,00-1.06; p=0.021), body mass index (BMI;...

Objective: this study aimed to describe the main factors associated to mortality in a cohort of patients hospitalized with SARS-CoV-2 pneumonia in a public hospital in Lima, Peru. Materials and methods: this was a retrospective cohort study, with a non-random convenience sampling. Adult patients with confirmed/suspicious SARS-CoV-2 pneumonia with rapid and/or molecular tests were included. Demographic, clinical, laboratory, tomographic and treatment variables were identified. Descriptive statistics, bivariate analysis, and Poisson regression techniques were used to determine the adjusted relative risk (aRR). Results: 122 patients were included, 70.5% were male, with a mean age of 55.8 years, with a history of obesity (25.4%) and high blood pressure (HBP, 13.1%). The multivariate analysis of clinical factors identified that age (aRR 1.03; 95% CI: 1,00-1.06; p=0.021), body mass index (BMI;...