Katarzyna Zycinska, MD, PhD, Professor graduated from the Medical University of Warsaw and is board certified in internal medicine and family medicine. Professor Zycinska is currently the Head of Chair and Department of Family Medicine, Medical University of Warsaw. She is a member of the Polish Internal Medicine Society and a board member of Polish Family Medicine Society. She is also a member of the College of Family Physicians in Poland and of the Association of Medical Education in Europe. Her main research areas are systemic vasculitis and nephrology. She is published in leading international medical journals.

Clostridium difficile infection (CDI) is one of the most common gastrointestinal complications after an antimicrobial treatment. It is estimated that CDI after the pneumonia treatment is connected with a higher mortality than other causes of hospitalization. The aim of the study was to assess the relationship between individual antibiotic intake and mortality of Clostridium difficile infection after pneumonia treatment. A retrospective analysis of 217 patients with CDI in the Internal Medicine Ward, Medical University of Warsaw was conducted. In 94 pa-tients who were treated for pneumonia CDI was diagnosed. To emphasize a correlation be-tween mortality of CDI and the antibiotic therapy the fraction test was performed. 94 patients 52% went through a severe and complicated infection. Among severe cases 62.5% (n=30) of records were provided respectively with ceftriaxone, 45.8% (n=22) ciprofloxacin, 41.6% (n=20) amoxicillin with clavulanic acid, 29.2% (n=14) clarithromycin, 22.9% (n=11) cefuroxime, 20.8% (n=10) imipenem. The fraction test revealed statistically significant mortality rate in a group of patients who were provided with ceftriaxone. The study shows there is a correlation between the antibiotic treatment of pneumonia and mortality rate in pa-tients who developed CDI due to the chosen therapy. There was a significant mortality rate according

to ceftriaxone intake; therefore, it should be avoided in patients with the higher risk of CDI.

Bozena Dworecka-Kaszak graduated from Veterinary Medicine Faculty of Warsaw University of Life Sciences in 1979. In 1982 she finished her PhD thesis: The effect of Clostridium oncolyticum s. butyricum M55 on hematopeosis in healthy and irradiated mice” at National Institute of Hygiene in Warsaw. She did habilitation in 2002 on the topic: “Characteristics of yeast-like fungi Malassezia pachydermatis and evaluation of their immunomodulation properties in vivo and in vitro” and become Specialist in Veterinary Laboratory Diagnostics. Since 1985 till present she has been working at Veterinary Medicine Faculty of Warsaw University of Life Sciences at the Department of Precilinical Sciences. In years 2000-2012 she was the Head of Mycology Division and she become University Professor in 2004. During her career, she completed many fellowships, such as at FeInstitut fur Mikrobiologie und Tierseuchen der Tierarztlichen, Hochschule Hannover (Germany) and at Dipartimento di Sanita Pubblica Veterinariae Patologia Animale, Universita Degli Studi di Bologna (Italy) as well as a Tempus Phare at Dipartimento de Medicina y Sanidad Animale, Patologia Infecciosa, Facultad de Veterinaria of Univesitad Extremadura in Caceres (Spain) and Tempus Phare, Erasmus Teacher Mobility Grant in Valencia UPV (Spain). Her field of interest is Mycology,

Mallasezia dog’s infections and dermatophytes.

Mycoses are common on over the world and some human infections may originate from animals. In Poland, infection of Trichophyton mentagrophytes and Microsporum canis are the most common animal ringworms. Skin infection due to other mycelial fungi such as Alternaria alternata, especially in horses has become a new clinical problem. Malassezia infections are the most frequent superficial skin mycoses of dogs, but their role in atopic dermatitis (AD) and possibility of transmission for people is often apart from understated. The number of dermatitis in companion animal caused by Candida has lately increased significantly too. Different species of Candida are also frequently isolated from mastitis in dairy cows. Fungal infections in amphibians are now one of the most important reasons of extinction of these animals. The most dangerous are infections of Batrachochytrium dendrobatidis or Saprolegnia ferax. Amphibian mycoses are so common and spread so fast, and have now been proclaimed an ecological catastrophe, but in Poland are rather rare problem. Aspergilosis in birds and nasal cavity aspergilosis in dogs are often shown in our country. There are no well documented reports of histoplasmosis, sporotrichosis, blastomycosis and coccidioidomycosis among animals in Poland, but the etiological role of many fungal species is still misunderstood. Simultaneously, the risk of animal’s mycoses as a source of infection for their owners is still not recognized to the end point.