
Antimicrobial Quick Reference
Antimicrobial Quick Reference
The LITFL Critical Care Compendium is a comprehensive collection of pages concisely covering the core topics and controversies of critical care.

Antimicrobial Quick Reference

Antimicrobial Stewardship is defined as ‘an ongoing effort by a health-care institution to optimise antimicrobial use among hospital patients in order to improve patient outcomes, ensure cost-effective therapy and reduce adverse sequelae of antimicrobial use (including antimicrobial resistance)’

Aspergillosis: fungal disease caused by the mold Aspergillus, ranging from hypersensitivity to invasive infection. Important species include Aspergillus fumigatus, niger, flavus, calavtus; transmission by inhalation; high mortality

Bacterial meningitis = pyogenic infection of the cerebral ventricles and subarachnoid space -> CSF; usually confined to meninges (although in neonates and adults with Listeria monocytogenes -> cerebritis, encephalitis and abscesses can form)


Diagnosis and treatment of candidiasis is a contentious issue; invasive candidiasis is difficult to diagnose; >150 species of Candida (a yeast), few are pathogens

Cellulitis is an uncomplicated non-necrotizing acute infection of the skin involving the hypodermis (mid-to-lower dermis and subcutaneous tissue) and spares deeper structures such as fascia and muscle.

Cholera: Gastrointestinal infection caused by vibrio cholerae (Gram negative rod); transmission through consumption of contaminated drinking water or food

Classification of Antibacterial Agents

Cytomegalovirus (CMV) is a human herpesvirus (HHV) that rarely causes significant disease in immunocompetent people but is an important cause of illness in the immunocompromised

Cryptococcosis is a fungal infection caused by two different yeast species, that usually manifests as meningitis or pneumonia; cryptococcus neoformans meningitis is an AIDS defining illness

DEFINITIONS Bacteria = single celled prokaryotic organism. Eukaryote = organism that possess a cell nucleus and other organelles. Fungi = eukaryotic organisms that absorb their food from other living or dead organisms. Parasite = an organism that grows, feeds, and…