- Overview
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My current research is focused on Clostridioides difficile infection. C. difficile is a common bacterium in the human gut that usually does not cause infection but in certain circumstances can cause diarrhea. It is significant because it can easily spread from patient to patient in hospitals if infection prevention measures and environmental cleaning practices are suboptimal. The current focus is on the interpretation of indeterminate (antigen positive/toxin negative) C. difficile testing and how patients are managed. I'm also aiming to improve the diagnostic stewardship of C. difficile to ensure that testing is done when clinically indicated and the right sample is collected.
- Publications
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Trends in Clostridioides difficile infection rates in Canadian hospitals during the coronavirus disease 2019 (COVID-19) pandemic
Infection Control & Hospital Epidemiology
Kelly B. Choi and Tim Du and Anada Silva and George R. Golding and Linda Pelude and Robyn Mitchell and Wallis Rudnick and Romeo Hizon and Ghada N Al-Rawahi and Blanda Chow and Ian Davis and Gerald A. Evans and Charles Frenette and Jennie Johnstone and Pamela Kibsey and Kevin C. Katz and Joanne M. Langley and Bonita E. Lee and Yves Longtin and Dominik Mertz and Jessica Minion and Michelle Science and Jocelyn A. Srigley and Paula Stagg and Kathryn N. Suh and Nisha Thampi and Alice Wong and Jeannette L. Comeau and Susy S. Hota
DOI: 10.1017/ice.2022.210
07/2023Epidemiology and associated risk factors for candidemia in a Canadian tertiary paediatric hospital: An 11-year review
JAMMI
DOI: 10.3138/jammi-2022-0021
2023Extraction-free clinical detection of SARS-CoV-2 virus from saline gargle samples using Hamilton STARlet liquid handler
Scientific Reports
DOI: 10.1038/s41598-023-30993-2
2023Limitation of ctrA as a Target for Neisseria meningitidis Identification and Potential Alternative Targets
Journal of Clinical Microbiology
Imogen Sirluck-Schroeder and Ghada N. Al-Rawahi and Vijay Gadkar and Linda Hoang and Raymond Tsang and Peter Tilley
DOI: 10.1128/jcm.00152-22
06/2022Characterization of Healthcare-Associated and Community-Associated Clostridioides difficile Infections among Adults, Canada, 2015–2019
Emerging Infectious Diseases
DOI: 10.3201/eid2806.212262
06/2022Evaluation of observed and unobserved self-collection of saline gargle samples for the detection of SARS-CoV-2 in outpatients
Diagnostic Microbiology and Infectious Disease
Mai-Lei Woo Kinshella and Peter Tilley and Ghada N. Al-Rawahi and Jocelyn A. Srigley and Iryna Kayda and Mitchell Canes and Meghan McLennan and Jeffrey N. Bone and Michelle Dittrick and Vijay J. Gadkar and Linda M.N. Hoang and David M. Goldfarb
DOI: 10.1016/j.diagmicrobio.2021.115566
02/2022COVID-19 in an immunocompromised host: persistent shedding of viable SARS-CoV-2 and emergence of multiple mutations: a case report
International Journal of Infectious Diseases
Wayne F. Leung and Samuel Chorlton and John Tyson and Ghada N. Al-Rawahi and Agatha N. Jassem and Natalie Prystajecky and Shazia Masud and Gregory D. Deans and Michael G. Chapman and Yazdan Mirzanejad and Melanie C.M. Murray and Patrick H.P. Wong
DOI: 10.1016/j.ijid.2021.10.045
01/2022Characterization of Extensively Drug-Resistant (XDR) Carbapenemase-Producing Enterobacterales (CPE) in Canada from 2019 to 2020
Microbiology Spectrum
DOI: 10.1128/spectrum.00975-22
2022Development and validation of a new triplex real-time quantitative reverse Transcriptase-PCR assay for the clinical detection of SARS-CoV-2.
Molecular and cellular probes
DOI: 10.1016/j.mcp.2021.101744
PubMed: 34089805
06/2021Self-Collected Saline Gargle Samples as an Alternative to Health Care Worker-Collected Nasopharyngeal Swabs for COVID-19 Diagnosis in Outpatients
Journal of Clinical Microbiology
David M. Goldfarb and Peter Tilley and Ghada N. Al-Rawahi and Jocelyn A. Srigley and Geoffrey Ford and Heather Pedersen and Abhilasha Pabbi and Stephanie Hannam-Clark and Marthe Charles and Michelle Dittrick and Vijay J. Gadkar and Jeffrey M. Pernica and Linda M. N. Hoang
DOI: 10.1128/JCM.02427-20
03/2021Septic arthritis due to Mycoplasma orale in a young patient with hypogammaglobulinemia
JAMMI
DOI: 10.3138/JAMMI-2021-0002
2021Self-collected Saline Gargle Samples as an Alternative to Healthcare Worker Collected Nasopharyngeal Swabs for COVID-19 Diagnosis in Outpatients
David M. Goldfarb and Peter Tilley and Ghada N. Al-Rawahi and Jocelyn A. Srigley and Geoffrey Ford and Heather Pedersen and Abhilasha Pabbi and Stephanie Hannam-Clark and Marthe Charles and Michelle Dittrick and Vijay J. Gadkar and Jeffrey M. Pernica and Linda M. N. Hoang
DOI: 10.1101/2020.09.13.20188334
09/2020Prevalence of Candida auris in Canadian acute care hospitals among at-risk patients, 2018.
Antimicrobial resistance and infection control
DOI: 10.1186/s13756-020-00752-3
PubMed: 32522237
06/2020Contribution of Real-Time Xpert MTB/RIF Testing to Establishing Early Diagnosis of Pediatric Extrapulmonary Tuberculosis in a Nonendemic Setting: A Case Series
Pediatric Infectious Disease Journal
DOI: 10.1097/INF.0000000000002488
2020Gargle-Direct: Extraction-free detection of SARS-CoV-2 using real-time PCR (RT-qPCR) of saline gargle rinse samples
medRxiv
DOI: 10.1101/2020.10.09.20203430
2020Performance of the BD phoenix automated microbiology system for trimethoprim-sulfamethoxazole susceptibility testing of Staphylococcus aureus
Journal of Clinical Microbiology
DOI: 10.1128/JCM.00994-19
2020Contribution of Real-Time Xpert MTB/RIF Testing to Establishing Early Diagnosis of Pediatric Extrapulmonary Tuberculosis in a Nonendemic Setting: A Case Series.
The Pediatric infectious disease journal
DOI: 10.1097/inf.0000000000002488
PubMed: 31651811
12/2019Asymptomatic Pharyngeal Carriage of Kingella kingae Among Young Children in Vancouver, British Columbia, Canada.
The Pediatric infectious disease journal
DOI: 10.1097/inf.0000000000002403
PubMed: 31335573
10/2019Prevalence and clinical impact of methicillin-resistant Staphylococcus aureus colonization among infants at a level III neonatal intensive care unit.
American journal of infection control
DOI: 10.1016/j.ajic.2019.04.173
PubMed: 31253554
06/2019Pediatric oncology and stem cell transplant patients with healthcare-associated Clostridium difficile infection were already colonized on admission
Pediatric Blood & Cancer
Ghada N. Al-Rawahi and Abeer Al-Najjar and Rachel McDonald and Rebecca J. Deyell and George R. Golding and Rollin Brant and Peter Tilley and Eva Thomas and Shahrad R. Rassekh and Aisling O'Gorman and Peggy Wong and Lucy Turnham and Simon Dobson
DOI: 10.1002/pbc.27604
05/2019Running out of options: Extensively drug-resistant urinary tract infection in an infant.
Paediatrics & child health
DOI: 10.1093/pch/pxz048
PubMed: 31528107
04/2019Asymptomatic Pharyngeal Carriage of Kingella kingae among Young Children in Vancouver, British Columbia, Canada
Pediatric Infectious Disease Journal
DOI: 10.1097/INF.0000000000002403
2019Baylisascariasis: A young boy with neural larva migrans due to the emerging raccoon round worm
Annals of Clinical and Translational Neurology
DOI: 10.1002/acn3.694
2019Ten-year-old traveller with fever and an exceptional exanthem.
Journal of paediatrics and child health
DOI: 10.1111/jpc.1_13703
PubMed: 29314380
01/2018Measles Lymphadenopathy in a Child With PFAPA Syndrome
Pediatric and Developmental Pathology
DOI: 10.1177/1093526617727970
2018Comparative evaluation of laboratory developed real-time PCR assays and RealStar(®) BKV PCR Kit for quantitative detection of BK polyomavirus.
Hasan MR and Tan R and Al-Rawahi G and Thomas E and Tilley P
DOI: 10.1016/j.jviromet.2016.04.009
PubMed: 27091098
08/2016Evaluation of amplification targets for the specific detection of Bordetella pertussis using real-time polymerase chain reaction.
Hasan MR and Tan R and Al-Rawahi GN and Thomas E and Tilley P
PubMed: 25285127
07/2014Granulomatous herpes simplex encephalitis in an infant with multicystic encephalopathy: a distinct clinicopathologic entity?
Schutz PW and Fauth CT and Al-Rawahi GN and Pugash D and White VA and Stockler S and Dunham CP
DOI: 10.1016/j.pediatrneurol.2013.12.008
PubMed: 24485930
04/2014AMMI Canada – CACMID Annual Conference: April 2–5, 2014, Victoria, British Columbia.
2014Carriage of methicillin-resistant Staphylococcus aureus by wild urban Norway rats (Rattus norvegicus).
Himsworth CG and Miller RR and Montoya V and Hoang L and Romney MG and Al-Rawahi GN and Kerr T and Jardine CM and Patrick DM and Tang P and Weese JS
DOI: 10.1371/journal.pone.0087983
PubMed: 24498421
2014Evaluation of amplification targets for the specific detection of Bordetella pertussis using real-time polymerase chain reaction
Canadian Journal of Infectious Diseases and Medical Microbiology
DOI: 10.1155/2014/763128
2014Clostridium difficile vertebral osteomyelitis.
Al-Najjar A and Al-Rawahi GN and Hoang LM and Kollmann TR
DOI: 10.1097/inf.0b013e318296b424
PubMed: 23594589
09/2013Optimal use of MRSASelect and PCR to maximize sensitivity and specificity of MRSA detection.
Hasan MR and Brunstein JD and Al-Rawahi G and Tan R and Thomas E and Tilley P
DOI: 10.1007/s00284-012-0241-1
PubMed: 23053488
01/2013Ten-year review of candidemia in a Canadian tertiary care centre: Predominance of non-albicans Candida species.
Al-Rawahi GN and Roscoe DL
PubMed: 24421833
2013Clostridium difficile vertebral osteomyelitis
Pediatric Infectious Disease Journal
DOI: 10.1097/INF.0b013e318296b424
2013Ten-year review of candidemia in a Canadian tertiary care centre: Predominance of non-albicans Candida species
Canadian Journal of Infectious Diseases and Medical Microbiology
DOI: 10.1155/2013/929717
2013Short-term stability of pathogen-specific nucleic acid targets in clinical samples.
Hasan MR and Tan R and Al-Rawahi GN and Thomas E and Tilley P
DOI: 10.1128/jcm.02659-12
PubMed: 23052319
12/2012Short-term stability of pathogen-specific nucleic acid targets in clinical samples
Journal of Clinical Microbiology
DOI: 10.1128/JCM.02659-12
2012Severe genital ulceration in an acute epstein-barr virus infection.
Al-Rawahi GN and Dobson SR and Scheifele DW and Rassekh SR and Murphy JJ
DOI: 10.1097/inf.0b013e3181f41b2e
PubMed: 20736877
02/2011Severe genital ulceration in an acute epstein-barr virus infection
Pediatric Infectious Disease Journal
DOI: 10.1097/INF.0b013e3181f41b2e
2011Swift mobilization of infection control, employee health, clinicians, engineering, laboratory and public health averted secondary cases following a large measles exposure at the British Columbia Children’s Hospital, Vancouver, BC, Canada.
Thomas E and Dobson S and Al-Rawahi G and Holmes L and Gustafson R and Papilla S and Hoang L and Tilley P
2011Community-associated CMRSA-10 (USA-300) is the predominant strain among methicillin-resistant Staphylococcus aureus strains causing skin and soft tissue infections in patients presenting to the emergency department of a Canadian tertiary care hospital.
Al-Rawahi GN and Reynolds S and Porter SD and Forrester L and Kishi L and Chong T and Bowie WR and Doyle PW
DOI: 10.1016/j.jemermed.2007.09.030
PubMed: 18325716
01/2010Anaerobic brain abscess following chronic suppurative otitis media in a child from Uganda.
The Canadian journal of infectious diseases & medical microbiology = Journal canadien des maladies infectieuses et de la microbiologie medicale
DOI: 10.1155/2009/407139
PubMed: 20808460
01/2009Anaerobic brain abscess following chronic suppurative otitis media in a child from Uganda.
Cox K and Al-Rawahi G and Kollmann T
PubMed: 20808460
2009Case report: failure of subcutaneous ivermectin in treating Strongyloides hyperinfection.
Leung V and Al-Rawahi GN and Grant J and Fleckenstein L and Bowie W
PubMed: 19052292
12/2008First report of isolation and characterization of Aurantimonas altamirensis from clinical samples.
Luong ML and Békal S and Vinh DC and Lauzon D and Leung V and Al-Rawahi GN and Ng B and Burdz T and Bernard K
DOI: 10.1128/jcm.00337-08
PubMed: 18495852
07/2008HIV-1 viral load after leukodepletion.
Al-Muharrmi Z and Al-Jabri AA and Al-Rawahi G and Scrimgeor EM and Al-Marhobi A
DOI: 10.1097/qai.0b013e318160a694
PubMed: 18520683
06/2008Methicillin-resistant Staphylococcus aureus nasal carriage among injection drug users: six years later.
Al-Rawahi GN and Schreader AG and Porter SD and Roscoe DL and Gustafson R and Bryce EA
DOI: 10.1128/jcm.01596-07
PubMed: 18039800
02/2008AMMI Canada?CACMID 2008 Annual Conference February 27 ? March 2, 2008 Sheraton Vancouver Wall Centre Hotel, Vancouver, British Columbia.
01/2008HIV-1 viral load after leukodepletion
Journal of Acquired Immune Deficiency Syndromes
DOI: 10.1097/QAI.0b013e318160a694
2008Methicillin-resistant Staphylococcus aureus nasal carriage among injection drug users: Six years later
Journal of Clinical Microbiology
DOI: 10.1128/JCM.01596-07
2008First report of isolation and characterization of Aurantimonas altamirensis from clinical samples
Journal of Clinical Microbiology
DOI: 10.1128/JCM.00337-08
2008Case report: Failure of subcutaneous ivermectin in treating Strongyloides hyperinfection
American Journal of Tropical Medicine and Hygiene
DOI: 10.4269/ajtmh.2008.79.853
2008 - Research
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Candidemia
To determine the epidemiology of candidemia in adults and children and the incidence of mixed candidemia.
To describe the correlation of antifungal susceptibility results with clinical outcome.Clostridium difficile in pediatric oncology
To determine the prevalence of indeterminate C. difficile results and correlate with the clinical management and outcome.
To establish a diagnostic stewardship QI focusing on C. difficile testing as a start.Catheter-associated UTI (CAUTI)
To implement insertion and maintenance bundles for urinary catheters.
To create an electronic tool to collect consistent and accurate CAUTI information.
To reduce the rate of CAUTI.Research Group MembersMichelle Dittrick, Clinical Research Program Manager
Research Roundup: January 2022
This month’s Research Roundup covers how increasing parent-child proximity in the first days of life can improve toddler behaviour later on, what lean body mass can tell us about the health of pediatric kidney transplant recipients, insights into the barriers to knowledge translation in Canadian pediatric health-care centres, and an evaluation of the effectiveness of saline gargle COVID-19 tests.
