News and Events
Infectious Disease Division Dominates the Stage at ID Week in Boston
Thursday, November 9, 2023
ID Week is a cornerstone event of the year, bringing together the Infectious Diseases Society of America with many other influential societies dedicated to the fields of ID, microbiology, and global health. Drawing an international crowd, experts convene to share insights on cutting-edge technology and progress in clinical care. The conference often brings up emerging infectious diseases and current public health challenges, making it a crucial event for the global health care community.
URMC had a substantial impact at the conference through a strong presence of moderators, speakers, and poster presentations. Division Chief, Paul Bohjanen, MD, PhD, attended the conference to support the faculty, residents, and fellows who presented. “I am proud of the great impact that the ID Division at URMC has on the field of infectious diseases, as evidenced by our numerous important presentations this year at ID Week."
Presentations
by author in alphabetical order
Angela Branche, MD – Associate Professor
- Moderator: Putting RSV Burden Under a Microscope: Trends, Advances, and Impact on Lives
- Moderator: New Developments in Vaccines
- Speaker: Translating Breakthroughs in RSV Vaccine Science into Care for Older Adults
- Speaker: Epidemiology of RSV and Prevention Measures
- Speaker: RSV in Adult Populations: Gains and Gaps in Our Understanding of Disease Burden
- Speaker: The Role of the Infectious Disease Specialist in Supporting Community Vaccination
David Dobrzynski, MD – Assistant Professor
- Moderator: Mentoring, Coaching and Sponsoring: Enhancing Critical Supports for Career Success
Ghinwa Dumyati, MD – Professor
- Poster: Characteristics of Patients with Initial Clostridioides difficile Infection (CDI) That Are Associated with Increased Risk of Multiple CDI Recurrences
- Poster: Trends in Incidence of Carbapenem-Resistant Enterobacterales (CRE) In Seven US sites, 2016─2020
- Poster: Characteristics of Community-Associated Extended-Spectrum β-Lactamase Producing Enterobacterales Infections in Monroe County, NY, 2020-2021
- Poster: Characteristics of nursing homes with higher rates of invasive methicillin-resistant Staphylococcus aureus infections
- Poster: Sociodemographic and Occupational Characteristics Associated with Delayed and Low COVID-19 Vaccine Uptake Among Healthcare Personnel: Monroe County, NY
- Poster: Healthcare-associated invasive Staphylococcus aureus among adults with prior COVID-19-associated hospitalization, 2020
- Poster: Methicillin-Resistant Staphylococcus aureus Bacteremia 30-Day Mortality During 2020 Compared to 2016-2019: Assessing the Impact of COVID-19
- Poster: Carbapenem-resistant Acinetobacter baumannii complex infections and SARS-CoV-2 positivity in 9 U.S. sites, 2020-2022
Ted Louie, MD – Associate Professor of Clinical Medicine
- Workshop Speaker: Pus, Slough and Drainage: Oh My! Hands-On Introduction to Wound Care for the ID Clinician
- Poster: Orthopedic Provider Adherence to American Academy of Orthopedic Surgeons (AAOS) Guidelines for Dental Prophylaxis in Total Joint Replacement
- Louie and Sonal Munsiff, MD are both co-authors
Sonal Munsiff, MD – Associate Professor
- Moderator: Updates in Bacteremia
- Poster: Evaluating the effect of respiratory isolation for TB on patient- and public health-important outcomes- a systematic review
Kelly Russo, MD – Internal Medicine Resident
- Poster Presenter: Evaluating Resistance Patterns of LVAD-related Pseudomonas Infections
- Co-authors include Christine Hay, MD, Professor, and Rodolfo Alpizar-Rivas, MD, Critical Care Fellow
Alexandra Yamschikov, MD – Associate Professor of Clinical Medicine
- Poster Presenter: High Rate of Adverse Events in Patients Receiving Oral Antimicrobials Under a COpAT Monitoring Protocol
- Co-authors include Sonal Munsiff, MD, and Angelina Winbush, MD, Internal Medicine Resident
Infectious Diseases and Pulmonary Divisions Team Up to Treat Growing (but Lesser Known) Disease
Thursday, August 3, 2023
Sonal Munsiff, MD, associate professor of Infectious Diseases, wants you to know about nontuberculous mycobacterial (NTM) lung disease. She has been treating a growing number of patients with NTM, yet it remains mostly un-talked about in hospitals and communities. She’d like to change that.
“NTM can cause infection anywhere in the body,” said Munsiff, “but the majority of the time they cause lung infections. A lot of patients get diagnosed through our Pulmonary groups. I have a particular interest in these bacteria, and we are seeing an increasing number of cases in New York State. We are now developing a program here to help manage these complex patients that need long courses of treatment with multiple antibiotics.”
There has already been a growing relationship between Pulmonary and ID as they collaborate on caring for these unique patients. Alexandra Adams, MD, and Paul Levy, MD, from Pulmonary & Critical Care Medicine, are working with Munsiff and Michael Croix, MD, from ID, to develop the current NTM clinical practices at URMC. They are also developing a multidisciplinary bronchiectasis program that will help support the pulmonary needs of NTM patients.
Ghinwa Dumyati, MD, professor of Infectious Diseases, runs the surveillance site for the New York State Emerging Infections Program. URMC is one of only 10 state sites across the country funded by the CDC to conduct surveillance for emerging infectious diseases. NTM has not been a reportable disease, so data is limited; our surveillance will help identify the burden of disease and risk factors for infection and guide prevention policies. Dumyati published initial findings in Clinical Infectious Diseases. Since data collection began, Munsiff has seen clinical volume rise, and is receiving referrals across Western and Central New York.
The ID division manages an outpatient IV antibiotic therapy program, which supports NTM patients who receive at-home IV treatments. There are three other physicians in ID besides Munsiff and Croix who treat NTM patients, and they hope to expand the program as it develops. Munsiff is preparing to participate in a multisite Phase 2/3 clinical trial focused on investigating a new oral drug for Mycobacterium avium complex, the most common form of NTM.
Munsiff and Adams, along with their respective division chiefs, Paul Bohjanen, MD, PhD, of Infectious Diseases, and Patricia Rivera, MD, of Pulmonary & Critical Care Medicine, see the growing need and have begun work to establish a multidisciplinary center at URMC, with members of both divisions, collaborating with respiratory therapists, pharmacists, and dieticians/nutritionists. A new center would offer patient support groups and patient advocacy too: as of now, most NTM patient support is virtual and online.
As they move forward in creating a center, they encourage UR faculty, nurses, and APPs with an interest in these patient cases to reach out to them.
Ann Falsey's Study Shows 80 Percent Effectiveness of RSV Vaccine for Older Adults
Thursday, February 16, 2023
Ann Falsey, M.D., professor of Medicine in infectious diseases and co-director of the URMC Vaccine and Treatment Evaluation Unit, is lead author of a recent New England Journal of Medicine paper based on a phase 2b clinical trial of the Janssen adult RSV vaccine. Falsey's research is among the first breakthroughs toward a safe and effective vaccine. With these results, Janssen has initiated its phase 3 trials with Falsey in an advisory role.