Healthcare-Associated Infections

Personalized prevention

Longitudinal and cross-sector analyses of clinical, microbiological, and epidemiological data support the identification of individual risk profiles and the development of targeted prevention strategies based on a One Health approach.

Within the central theme "Personalized prevention," the development of individualized treatment strategies instead of broad antibiotic use is a central focus. Novel diagnostic approaches are intended to enable the early identification of the most appropriate prevention and treatment strategies for individual patients.

To achieve this, we develop and apply data- and AI-driven methods as well as prediction models for the early detection of individual infection risks. App-based technologies and innovative data collection approaches are designed to support long-term outpatient care and continuous monitoring of study participants.

Based on existing cohorts (TIARA, BLOOMY, and AEGON) as well as surveillance data from R-Net, we develop personalized prognostic models for the following:

Maria Vehreschild at University Hospital of Cologne

Responsible use of antibiotics is also on the agenda at the University Hospital of Cologne. In the picture: DZIF scientist Maria Vehreschild.

© DZIF/ScienceRelations
  • the risk of colonization with multidrug-resistant ESKAPE pathogens
  • the occurrence of bloodstream infections and other severe infections
  • the risk of severe infection-related complications, such as sepsis or increased mortality, in high-risk patients (e.g., patients in intensive care units).

Research about "Personalized prevention"

Bonn - Köln

Antibacterial Vaccines and Diagnostics Development (ACTIVATE)

The DZIF working group "Antibacterial Vaccines and Diagnostics Development" (ACTIVATE) led by Alexander Klimka develops active and passive vaccines against bacterial pathogens and antibody-based rapid tests to detect antibiotic-resistant bacteria. In 2017, the World Health Organization (WHO) published a list of bacterial pathogens against which active agents must be found [...]

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Tübingen

Clinical Research Unit for microbiome-host interactions

The Clinical Research Unit (CRU) at Tübingen University Hospital, headed by Christoph Stein-Thoeringer, combines expertise from the fields of clinical medicine, infectious diseases, microbiome research, immunology, basic sciences, and epidemiology. Scientists and physicians collaborate closely to study various aspects of hospital-acquired infections, develop personalized prevention and prediction strategies for severe [...]

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Hamburg - Lübeck - Borstel - Riems

PASTICCIO: Preventing antimicrobial resistance in sexually transmitted infections

The bacterial pathogens Chlamydia trachomatis and Neisseria gonorrhoeae are the most common sexually transmitted infections (STIs) leading to infertility in women. The World Health Organisation (WHO) estimates that 89 million new infections with genital chlamydia and 78 million infections with gonococci occur worldwide every year. In contrast to other European [...]

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Bonn - Köln | Gießen - Marburg - Langen | Hamburg - Lübeck - Borstel - Riems | Heidelberg | München | Tübingen

TIARA: The impact of colonization with MDRO in complex surgical patients

Major abdominal surgery in particular is associated with high postoperative infection rates. Despite well-established surveillance systems for surgical wound infections, there is a lack of comprehensive reporting on infectious complications and the impact of the use of anti-infectives during and after surgery. The TIARA project aims to close this knowledge [...]

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Bonn - Köln | Hamburg - Lübeck - Borstel - Riems | Tübingen

BLOOMY-PREDICT: Bloodstream infections due to multidrug-resistant organisms

Bloodstream infections (BSI) are associated with high morbidity and mortality worldwide and are still considered as one of the most severe bacterial infections. The BLOOMY-PREDICT project is an observational study, which runs at five German university hospitals. Within the scope of the project, different clinical values of patients such as [...]

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Bonn - Köln | Hamburg - Lübeck - Borstel - Riems

AEGON: Assessing the impact of antimicrobial exposure and infection control measures on the spread of vancomycin-resistant enterococci

Recent studies show that there has been an increasing spread of vancomycin-resistant enterococci (VRE) in hospital patients in Germany in recent years. Enterococci are abundant in the intestines of humans (and animals) and are generally only slightly pathogenic. However, infections caused by these resistant pathogens pose an immediate threat to [...]

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Publications

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News about the Research Field

The GUARDIAN project uses AI to combat antibiotic-resistant bacteria.
© JLU (Generated by AI using ChatGPT)

Kickoff meeting for the GUARDIAN research project in Giessen marks the launch of interdisciplinary collaboration against antibiotic resistance

At the DZIF partner site in Giessen, a ceremonial kickoff meeting marked the launch of the GUARDIAN research project, which is funded with 3.5 million euros by the Federal Ministry of Research
Portrait of Dr. Janko Sattler. Mr Sattler is wearing a dark suit and tie.
© Michel Buchmann

Research award for DZIF Scientist Janko Sattler

DZIF scientist Dr Janko Sattler, a medical specialist at the Institute for Medical Microbiology, Immunology and Hygiene at the University Hospital Cologne, was awarded the bioMérieux Diagnostics Prize
Resistenzgene nachweisen
© JLU Gießen

Learning lessons from the coronavirus pandemic on containing other infections

Healthcare-associated infections have been growing continuously for years, resulting in hundreds of thousands of avoidable deaths each year. The main culprit is bacteria that have become resistant to