Sam Aitken, PharmD, MPH, BCIDP

Pharmacy Specialist- Infectious Diseases
Adjunct Clinical Professor of Pharmacy
Rotations Offered: Infectious Diseases

Biography

Pharmacy School Attended: University at Buffalo School of Pharmacy and Pharmaceutical Sciences (2011)

Additional Training: 

  • PGY1 Pharmacy- Yale-New Haven Hospital, CT (2012)
  • PGY2 Infectious Diseases Fellowship- University of Houston College of Pharmacy / Baylor St. Luke’s Medical Center (2014)
  • Masters in Public Health- Texas A&M Health University School of Public Health (2019)

Honors & Awards

Delta Omega, Alpha Tau Chapter (2019)

ACCP ID-PRN Clinical Practice Award (2017)

ASM ICAAC Infectious Diseases Fellows Grant (2013)

University at Buffalo School of Pharmacy Alumni Association Award (2011)

Published Articles or Reviews

  • Sassine J, Khawaja F, Shigle TL, Handy V, Foolad F, Aitken SL, Jiang Y, Champlin R, Shpall E, Rezvani K, Arize-Heredia E, Chemaly RF. Refractory and resistant cytomegalovirus after hematopoietic cell transplant in the letermovir era. Clinical Infectious Diseases 2021 (ePub ahead of print, doi: 10.1093/cid/ciab298)
  • Shropshire WC, Aitken SL, Pifer R, Kim J, Bhatti MM, Li X, Kalia A, Galloway-Peña JR, Sahasrabhojane PV, Arias CA, Greenberg D, Hanson B, Shelburne SA. IS26-mediated amplification of blaOXA-1 and blaCTX-M-15 with concurrent outer membrane porin disruption associated with de novo carbapenem resistance in a recurrent bacteremia cohort.  Journal of Antimicrobial Chemotherapy (ePub ahead of print, doi: 10.1093/jac/dkaa447)
  • Yepez Guevara EA, Aitken SL, Olvera AV, Carlin L, Fernandes KE, Bhatti MM, Garey KW, Adachi J, Okhuysen PC. Clostridioides difficile in cancer and immunocompromised patients:   relevance of a two-step diagnostic algorithm and infecting ribotypes on clinical outcomes. Clinical Infectious Diseases 2021;72(10):e460-6
  • John TM, Malek AE, Mulanovich VE, Adachi JA, Raad II, Hamilton AR, Shpall EJ, Rezvani K,Aitken SL, Jain N, Klein K, Martinez F, Jacob CN, Cherian SC, Manzano JM, Muthu M, WegnerR. Migratory pulmonary infiltrates in a patient with COVID-19 infection and the role of corticosteroids. Mayo Clin Proc 2020;95(9):2038-4
  • Spencer HK, Spitznogle SL, Borjan J, Aitken SL*. An overview of the treatment of les s common non-lactose fermenting Gram-negative bacteria. Pharmacotherapy 2020;40(9):936-951
  • Aitken SL, Sahasrabhojane PV, Kontoyiannis DP, Savidge TC, Arias CA, Ajami NJ, Shelburne SA, Galloway-Peña JR. Alterations of the oral microbiome and carbapenem exposure are associated with Stenotrophomonas maltophilia infection in patients with acute myeloid leukemia receiving chemotherapy. Clinical Infectious Diseases. 2021;72(9):1507-13
  • Frei M, Aitken SL, Jain N, Thompson P, Wierda W, Kontoyiannis DP, DiPippo AJ. Incidence and characterization of fungal infections in chronic lymphocytic leukemia patients receiving ibrutinib. Leukemia & Lymphoma. 2020;61(10):2488-91
  • Rolston KVI, Gerges B, Shelburne S, Aitken SL, Raad I, Prince RA. Activity of cefiderocol and comparators against isolates from cancer patients. Antimicrobial Agents and Chemotherapy. 2020;64(5):e01955-19
  •  Haiduc M, Radparvar S, Aitken SL, Altshuler J. Does switching norepinephrine to phenylephrine in septic shock complicated by atrial fibrillation with rapid ventricular response improve time to rate control? Journal of Intensive Care Medicine. 2020 (ePub ahead of print, doi: 10.1177/0885066619896292)
  • Hendrickson JA, Hu C, Aitken SL, Beyda N. Antifungal resistance: a concerning trend for the present and future. Current Infectious Diseases Reports 2019;21(12):47
  • Shelburne SA, Wilson Dib R, Reitzel R, Li X, Kalia A, Sahasrabhojane P, Chaftari AM, Hachem R, Vargas-Cruz N, Jiang Y, Garey KW, Fowler V, Holland T, Gu J, Miller WR, Sakurai A, Arias CA, Aitken SL, Greenberg DE, Kim J, Flores AR, Raad I. Whole genome sequencing of Staphylococcus epidermidis bloodstream isolates from a prospective clinical trial reveals that complicated bacteremia is caused by a limited number of closely related sequence types. Clinical Microbiology and Infection. 2020;26(5):646.e1-646.e8
  •  Figgins BS, Aitken SL, Whited LK. Optimization of intravenous immune globulin use at a comprehensive cancer center. American Journal of Health-System Pharmacy. 2019;76(S4):S102-106
  • Rodríguez-Núñez O, Periañez-Parraga L, Oliver A, Munita JM, Boté A, Gasch O, Nuvials X, Dinh A, Shaw RH, Lomas JM, Torres V, Castón JJ, Araos R, Abbo LM, Rakita R, Pérez F, Aitken SL, Arias CA, Martín-Pena ML, Colomar A, Núñez MB, Mensa J, Martínez JA, Soriano A. Higher MICs (>2 mg/L) predict 30-day mortality in patients with lower respiratory tract infections caused by multidrug and extensively drug resistant Pseudomonas aeruginosa treated with ceftolozane/tazobactam. Open Forum Infectious Diseases 2019;6(10):ofz416
  • Hicks JK, Aquilante CL, Dunnenberger HM, Gammal RS, Funk RS, Aitken SL, Bright DR, Coons JC, Dotson KM, Elder CT, Groff LT, Lee JC. Precision pharmacotherapy: integrating pharmacogenomics into pharmacy practice. Journal of the American College of Clinical Pharmacy 2019;2(3):303-313Avery LM, Kuti JL, Weisser M, Egli A, Rybak MJ, Zasowski EJ, Arias CA, Contreras GA, Chong PP, Aitken SL, DiPippo AJ, Wang JT, Britt NS, Nicolau DP. Pharmacodynamics of daptomycin in combination with other antibiotics for the treatment of enterococcal bacteremia. International Journal of Antimicrobial Agents 2019;54(3):346-50
  • Doan VP, Yeh JC, Gulbis AM, Aitken SL, Ariza-Heredia E, Ahmed S. Levofloxacin versus cefpodoxime for antibacterial prophylaxis in allogeneic stem cell transplantation. Biology of Blood and Marrow Transplantation. 2019;25(8):1637-41
  • Kontoyiannis DP, Shah EC, Wurster S, Aitken SL, Graviss L, Chemaly RF. Culture- documented mold infections at MD Anderson Cancer Center in Houston, TX pre and post Hurricane Harvey. Open Forum Infectious Diseases 2019;6(4):ofz138
  • Benanti GE, Brown ART, Shigle TL, Tarrand JJ, Bhatti MM, McDaneld PM, Shelburne SA, Aitken SL*. Carbapenem versus cefepime or piperacillin-tazobactam for the empiric treatment of extended-spectrum β-lactamase producing Escherichia coli bacteremia in patients with hematologic malignancy. Antimicrobial Agents and Chemotherapy. 2019;63(2):e01813-18
  • Foolad F, Aitken SL¸ Shigle TL, Prayag A, Ghantoji S, Ariza-Heredia E, Chemaly RF. Oral versus aerosolized ribavirin for the treatment of respiratory syncytial virus infections in hematopoietic cell transplantation recipients. Clinical Infectious Diseases. ePub ahead of print (9/8/2018), doi: 10.1093/cid/ciy760
  • Avery LM, Kuti JL, Weisser M, Egli A, Rybak MJ, Zasowski EJ, Arias CA, Contreras GA, Chong PP, Aitken SL, DiPippo AJ, Wang JT, Britt NS, Nicolau DP. Pharmacodynamic analysis of daptomycin-treated Enterococcal bacteremia: it is time to change the breakpoint. Clinical Infectious Diseases. ePub ahead of print (9/5/2018), doi: 10.1093/cid/ciy749
  • Foolad F, Aitken SL, Chemaly RF. Letermovir for the prevention of cytomegalovirus infection in adult cytomegalovirus-seropositive hematopoietic stem cell transplant recipients. Expert Review of Clinical Pharmacology. 2018;11(10):931-41
  • Folan SA, Marx KR, Tverdek FP, Raad I, Mulanovich VE, Tarrand JJ, Shelburne SA, Aitken SL*. Clinical outcomes associated with linezolid resistance in leukemia patients with linezolid-resistant Staphylococcus epidermidis bacteremia. Open Forum Infectious Disease 2018;5(7):ofy167
  • Gritsenko D, Paris D, Aitken SL¸ Lee YI, Altshuler J. Amiodarone versus digoxin for rate control in critically ill patients with rapid atrial fibrillation or flutter. Journal of Emergency and Critical Care Medicine. 2018;2:63
  • Figgins B, Aitken SL¸ Whited L. Optimization of intravenous immunoglobulin utilization at a comprehensive cancer center. American Journal of Health-System Pharmacy Residents Edition (in press, accepted 6/1/2018)
  • Dotson KM, Aitken SL, Sofjan A, Shah DN, Aparasu R, Garey KW. Outcomes associated with Clostridium difficile infection in patients with chronic liver disease. Epidemiology and Infection. 2018;146(9):1101-5
  •  Smith DV, Stokes LB, Marx KR, Aitken SL. Navigating manuscript assessment: the new practitioner’s guide to primary literature peer review. Journal of Oncology Pharmacy Practice. 2019;25(1):94-100
  • Foolad F, Taylor B, Shelburne SA, Arias CA, Aitken SL*. Association of daptomycin dosing regimen and mortality in patients with vancomycin-resistant Enterococcus bacteraemia: a review. Journal of Antimicrobial Chemotherapy. 2018;73(9):2277-83
  • Li X, Arias CA, Aitken SL, Galloway Peña J, Panesso D, Chang M, Diaz L, Rios R, Numan Y, Ghaoui S, Debroy S, Bhatti MM, Simmons DE, Raad I, Hachem R, Folan SA, Sahasarabhojane P, Kalia A, Shelburne SA. Clonal emergence of invasive multi-drug resistant Staphylococcus epidermidis deconvoluted via a combination of whole genome sequencing and microbiome analysis. Clinical Infectious Diseases. 2018;67(3):398-406
  • Poon T, Glick Paris D, Aitken SL, Patrawalla P, Bondarsky E, Altshuler J. Extended versus short course corticosteroid taper regimens in the management of chronic obstructive pulmonary disease exacerbations in critically ill patients. Journal of Intensive Care Medicine. ePub ahead of print (1/1/2017), doi: 10.1177/088506617741470
  • Santarossa M, Aitken SL, Nagel J. Improving antimicrobial stewardship in cancer patients through implementation of clinical guidelines. Current Treatment Options in Infectious Diseases. 2017;9(3):333-46
  • Tverdek FP, Heo ST, Aitken SL, Granwehr B, Kontoyiannis DP. Real-life assessment of the safety and effectiveness of the new tablet and intravenous formulations of posaconazole in the prophylaxis of invasive fungal infections: analysis of 343 courses. Antimicrobial Agents and Chemotherapy. 2017;61(8):e00188-17
  • Shelburne SA, Kim J, Munita JM, Sahasrabhojane P, Shields RK, Press EG, Li X, Arias CA, Cantarel B, Jiang Y, Aitken SL, Greenberg DE. Whole genome sequencing accurately identifies resistance to extended spectrum β-lactams for major Gram-negative bacterial pathogens. Clinical Infectious Diseases. 2017;65(5):738-45
  •  Altshuler J, Guervil DJ, Ericsson CD, Wanger A, Aitken SL, Ostrosky-Zeichner L. Clinical outcomes in patients with gram-negative infections treated with optimized dosing cefepime over various minimum inhibitory concentrations. Journal of Pharmacy Practice. 2018;31(1):34-39
  • Buege MJ, Brown JE, Aitken SL*. Solithromycin: in vitro, in vivo, and clinical experience with a novel ketolide antibiotic. American Journal of Health-System Pharmacy. 2017;74(12):875- 87Heo ST, Aitken SL, Tverdek FP, Kontoyiannis DP. How common is subsequent central nervous system toxicity in asymptomatic patients with haematologic malignancy and supratherapeutic voriconazole serum levels? Clinical Microbiology and Infection. 2017;23(6):387-90
  • Munita JM, Aitken SL, Miller WR, Perez F, Rosa R, Shimose LA, Lichtenberger PN, Abbo LM, Jain R, Nigo M, Wanger A, Araos R, Tran TT, Adachi JA, Rakita R, Shelburne SA, Bonomo RA, Arias CA. Multicenter evaluation of ceftolozane/tazobactam for serious infectious caused by carbapenem-resistant Pseudomonas aeruginosa. Clinical Infectious Diseases.2017;65(1):158-61
  • Arizpe A, Reveles KR, Aitken SL*. Regional variation in antibiotic prescribing among Medicare Part D enrollees, 2013. BMC Infectious Diseases. 2016;16(1):744
  • DiPippo AJ, Tverdek FP, Tarrand JJ, Munita JM, Tran TT, Arias CA, Shelburne SA, Aitken SL*. Daptomycin non-susceptibile Enterococcus faecium in leukemia patients: role of prior daptomycin exposure. Journal of Infection. 2017;74(3):243-7
  • Arizpe A, Reveles KR, Patel SD, Aitken SL*. Updates in the management of cephalosporin- resistant Gram-negative bacteria. Current Infectious Disease Reports. 2016;18(12):39
  • Phe K, Shields RK, Tverdek FP, Aitken SL, Guervil DJ, Lam WL, Musgrove RJ, Luce AM, Tam VH. Predicting the risk of nephrotoxicity in patients receiving colistimethate sodium: a multicenter, retrospective, cohort study. Journal of Antimicrobial Chemotherapy. 2016;71(12):3585-7
  •  Aitken SL, Tarrand JJ, Deshpande LM, Tverdek FP, Jones AL, Shelburne SA, Prince RA, Bhatti MM, Rolston KVI, Jones RN, Castanheira M, Chemaly RF. High rates of non-susceptibility to ceftazidime-avibactam and identification of New Delhi metallo-β-lactamase production in Enterobacteriaceae bloodstream infections at a major cancer center. Clinical Infectious Diseases. 2016;63(7):954-8
  • Shah DN, Aitken SL, Barragan LF, Bozorgui S, Goddu S, Navarro ME, Xie Y, DuPont HL, Garey KW. Economic burden of primary vs. recurrent Clostridium difficile infection in hospitalized patients; a prospective cohort study. Journal of Hospital Infection. 2016;93(3):286-9
  • Aitken SL*, Kontoyiannis DP, DePombo AM, Bhatti MM, Tverdek FP, Gettys SC, Nicolau DP, Nunez CA. Use of ceftolozane/tazobactam in the treatment of multidrug-resistant Pseudomonas aeruginosa in a pediatric leukemia patient. The Pediatric Infectious Disease Journal. 2016;35(9):1040-2
  • Aitken SL, Dilworth TJ, Heil EH, Nailor MD. Agricultural applications for antimicrobials: a danger to human health – an official position statement of the Society of Infectious Diseases Pharmacists. Pharmacotherapy. 2016;36(4):422-32
  • Babic JT, Sofjan A, Babin M, Echevarria K, Ikwuagwu JO, Lam WL, Aitken SL, Perez KK. Significant publications on infectious diseases pharmacotherapy in 2015. American Journal of Health-Systems Pharmacy. 2017;74(4):238-52
  •  Garey KW, Aitken SL, Gschwind L, Goddu S, Xie Y, Duff C, Barbut F, Shah DN, DuPont HL. Development and validation of a Clostridium difficile health-related quality of life questionnaire. Journal of Clinical Gastroenterology. 2016;50(8):631-7
  • Chemaly RF, Aitken SL, Wolfe CR, Jain R, Boeckh MJ. Aerosolized ribavirin – the most expensive drug for pneumonia. Transplant Infectious Diseases. 2016;18(4):634-6
  • Aitken SL, Zhou J, Ghantoji SS, Kontoyiannis DP, Jones RB, Tam VH, Chemaly RF. Pharmacokinetics and safety of intravesicular cidofovir in allogeneic hematopoietic stem cell transplant recipients. Journal of Antimicrobial Chemotherapy. 2016;71:727-30
  • Aitken SL, Alam MJ, Khaleduzzaman M, Walk ST, Musick WL, Pham VP, Christensen J, Atmar RL, Xie Y, Garey KW. In the endemic setting, Clostridium difficile ribotype 027 is virulent but not hypervirulent. Infection Control and Hospital Epidemiology. 2015;36(11):1318-23
  • Pham VP, Luce AM, Ruppelt SC, Wei W, Aitken SL, Musick WL, Roux R, Garey KW. Age- stratified treatment response rates in hospitalized patients with Clostridium difficile infection treated with metronidazole. Antimicrobial Agents and Chemotherapy. 2015;59(10):6113-6
  •  Phe K, Cadle RM, Guervil DJ, Guzman OE, Lockwood AM, Perez KK, Vuong NN, Aitken SL*. Significant publications on infectious diseases pharmacotherapy in 2014. American Journal of Health-Systems Pharmacy. 2015;72(15):1380-92
  • Argamany JR, Aitken SL, Lee GC, Boyd NK, Reveles KR. Regional and seasonal variation in Clostridium difficile infections among hospitalized patients in the United States, 2001 to 2010. American Journal of Infection Control. 2015;43(5):435-40
  • Aitken SL, Altshuler J, Guervil DJ, Hirsch EB, Ostrosky-Zeichner LL, Ericsson CD, Tam VH. Cefepime free minimum concentration to minimum inhibitory concentration (fCmin/MIC) ratio predicts clinical failure in patients with Gram-negative bacterial pneumonia. International Journal of Antimicrobial Agents. 2015;45(5):541-4
  • Aitken SL, Tichy EM. Rh(O)D immune globulin products for the prevention of alloimmunization during pregnancy. American Journal of Health-Systems Pharmacy. 2015;72(4):267-76
  • Garey KW, Aitken SL, Dima-Ala A, Beyda ND, Kuper K, Xie Y, Koo HL. Echinocandin use in hospitalized patients: a multi-institutional study. The American Journal of the Medical Sciences. 2015;349(4):316-20
  • Aitken SL, Hemmige VS, Koo HL, Vuong NN, Lasco TM, Garey KW. Real-world performance of a microarray-based rapid diagnostic for Gram-positive bloodstream infections and potential utility for antimicrobial stewardship. Diagnostic Microbiology and Infectious Disease. 2015;81(1):4-8
  • Aitken SL, Joseph TB, Shah DN, Lasco TM, Palmer HR, DuPont HL, Xie Y, Garey KW. Healthcare resource utilization for recurrent Clostridium difficile infection in a large university hospital in Houston, Texas. PLoS One. 2014;9(7):e102848
  • Aitken SL, Beyda ND, Shah DN, Palmer HR, Koo HL, Garey KW. Clinical practice patterns in hospitalized patients at risk for invasive candidiasis: role of antifungal stewardship programs in an era of rapid diagnostics. Annals of Pharmacotherapy. 2014;48(6):683-90
  • Darkoh C, Turnwald B, Koo HL, Garey KW, Jiang ZD, Aitken SL, DuPont HL. Colonic immunopathogenesis of Clostridium difficile infection. Clinical and Vaccine Immunology. 2014;21(4):509-17
  • Marfo K, Aitken SL, Akalin E. Clinical outcomes of conversion from brand-name tacrolimus (Prograf) to a generic formulation in renal transplant recipients: a retrospective cohort study. P&T. 2013;38(8):484-8
  • Brown J, Aitken SL, van Mannen RP. Potential for linezolid-related blindness: a review of spontaneous adverse event reports. Pharmacotherapy. 2011;31(6):585-90
  • Brown J, Aitken SL, Mackey M, Sawkar S, Dodds Ashley ES. Effect of colistin on phospholipid-based activated partial thromboplastin time clotting assay results in patients receiving concomitant heparin therapy. Pharmacotherapy. 2011;31(3):277-9