Irving Nachamkin, DrPH, MPH, D(ABMM), FAAM, FIDSA
Emeritus Professor of Pathology and Laboratory Medicine
Perelman School of Medicine at the University of Pennsylvania
Contact InformationDepartment of Pathology and Laboratory Medicine
Hospital of the University of Pennsylvania
3400 Spruce Street
Philadelphia, PA 19104-4283
Email: nachamki@pennmedicine.upenn.edu
Specialty Division
Laboratory Medicine
Research Expertise
My research interests include studies on diagnostic stewardship, blood cultures, antimicrobial resistance, gastrointestinal infections, molecular diagnostics and other general areas in the field of clinical microbiology I also have a special interest in Campylobacter infections and its association with Guillain-Barre Syndrome.
Clinical Expertise
I am the immediate past Director of the Division of Laboratory Medicine (2009-2020) at the Hospital of the University of Pennsylvania as well as immediate past Associate Director of the Clinical Microbiology Laboratory (1982-2020). My areas of expertise include most areas of clinical microbiology. I have particular interests in the diagnosis of gastrointestinal infections.
Other Expertise
I have published over 225 research papers, reviews, and book chapters. Link: https://scholar.google.com/citations?user=2fGzLjEAAAAJ&hl=en
Education
B.Sc. (Medical Laboratory Science), University of Bridgeport, Bridgeport, CT, 1975
M.P.H. (Public Health Laboratory Practice), University of North Carolina at Chapel Hill, Chapel Hill, NC, 1978
Dr.P.H. (Public Health Microbiology), University of North Carolina at Chapel Hill, Chapel Hill, NC, 1980
Specialty Certification
MT (ASCP), American Society of Clinical Pathologists, 1975
Diplomate, American Board of Medical Microbiology, 1987
Postgraduate Training
Fellow, Medical and Public Health Laboratory Microbiology, Dept. of Pathology, Medical College of Virginia, Virginia Commonwealth University, Richmond, 1980-1982
Penn Medicine Clinical Leadership Academy, Penn Medicine, 2010-2011
Awards and Honors
Becton Dickinson Pre-Doctoral Fellowship, University of North Carolina at Chapel Hill, 1977-1980
Professor (Hon.), Department of Neurology, Second Affiliated Hospital, Shijiazhuang, P.R. China, 1993
President's Award, New Jersey Public Health Association, 1995
Professor (Hon.) of Medical Sciences, Hebei Medical College, Shijiazhuang, P.R. China, 1995
Elected to Fellow, Infectious Diseases Society of America, 2000
Elected to Fellow, American Academy of Microbiology, 2000
Foundation for Microbiology Lecturer, American Society for Microbiology, Washington, DC, 2000-2002
Elected to Fellow, College of Physicians of Philadelphia, 2003
Elected Member, Council Policy Committee, American Society for Microbiology, 2005-2008
UPHS Quality Award, "Building a Culture of High-Value Care: Reducing Unnecessary Ordering of Inpatient Laboratory Tests", 2015
Memberships and Professional Organizations
American Society of Clinical Pathologists, 1975 - 2022
Eastern Pennsylvania Branch, American Society for Microbiology, 1982 - Present
American Society for Microbiology, 1982 - Present
Infectious Diseases Society of America, 1995 - Present
Food and Drug Administration, Microbiological Devices Review Panel, 1999 - 2016
American Academy of Microbiology, 2000 - Present
College of Physicians of Philadelphia, 2003 - Present
Clinical Laboratory Standards Institute, 2004 - 2004
The Society for Healthcare Epidemiology of America, 2009 - 2020
American Association for Clinical Chemistry, 2010 - 2019
Association for Molecular Pathology, 2011 - 2019
Voting Member, Council on Microbial Sciences, American Society for Microbiology, 2019 - 2021
Rheonix Inc., 2020 - Present
Novitas Solutions Jurisdiction L (JL) Contractor Advisory Committee (CAC), 2022 - Present
Web Links
Donate Now- William Pepper Jr Book Restoration Project (fund number 603687)
Dept of Path & Lab Med Homepage
History of Clinical Microbiology at the University of Pennsylvania
Follow The Specimen - Behind The Scenes Look at Pathology and Lab Medicine (video)
Selected Publications
American Society for Microbiology Evidence-Based Laboratory Medicine Practice Guideline to Reduce Blood Culture Contamination Rates: A Systematic Review and Meta-Analysis
Sautter RL*, Parrott JS, Nachamkin I*, Diel C, Tom RJ, Bobenchik AM, Bradford JY, Gilligan P, Halstead DC, LaSala PR, Mochon AB, Mortensen JL, Boyce L Baselski V, Clin Microbiol Rev, 2024
Campylobacter and Arcobacter
Nachamkin I, Manual of Clinical Microbiology, 13th Edition, 2023
Clinical Evaluation of a New Molecular Test for the Detection of Organisms Causing Vaginitis and Vaginosis
Lillis RA, Parker RL, Ackerman R, Ackerman J, Young S, Weissfeld A, Trevino E, Nachamkin I, Crane L, Brown J, Huang C, Liu X, Van Der Pol B., J Clin Microbiol, 2023
The 2024 ASM Awards and Prize Program – Recognizing Excellence in the Microbiological Sciences
Nachamkin I, Babady E, J Clin Microbiol 62(): e00012-24, 2024
Phylogenetic analysis reveals source attribution patterns for Campylobacter spp in Tennessee and Pennsylvania
Hudson LK, Andershock WE, Yan R, Golwalkar M, M’ikanatha NM, Nachamkin I, Thomas LS, Moore C, Qian X, Steece R, Garman KN, Dunn JR, Kovac J, Denes TG., Microorganisms 9(11): 2900, 2021
Reduction in sporadic Norovirus infections following the start of the COVID-19 pandemic, 2019-2020, Philadelphia
Nachamkin I, Richard-Greenblatt M, Yu M, Bui H., Infectious Diseases and Therapy 10(3): 1793-1798, 2021
Reducing Blood Culture Contamination Rates: Experiences of Four Hospital Systems
Halstead DC, Sautter RL, Snyder JW, Crist Jr AE, Nachamkin I, Infectious Diseases and Therapy 9(2): 389-401, 2020
The Potential Economic Value of Sputum Culture Use in Patients with Community-Acquired Pneumonia and Healthcare-Associated Pneumonia
Asti, L., Bartsch, S., Umsheid, C., Hamilton, K., Nachamkin, I., Lee, B., Clin Microbiol Infect 25(8): 1038.e1-1038.e9, 2019, PMID:30590113
A laboratory medicine best practices systematic review and meta-analysis of nucleic acid amplification tests (NAAT) and algorithms including NAAT for the diagnosis of Clostridioides (Clostridium) difficile in adults
Kraft C, Parrott J, Cornish N, Rubinstein M, Weissfeld A, McNult P, Nachamkin I, Humphries R, Kirn T, Dien Bard J, Lutgring J, Gullett J, Bittencourt C, Benson S, Bobenchik A, Sautter R, Baselski V, Atlas M, Marlowe B, Miller N, Fischer M, Richter S, Gilligan P, Snyder J, Clin Microbiol Rev, 2019
Gut microbiome alteration in MORDOR I: a community-randomized trial of mass azithromycin distribution
Doan, T., A. Hinterwirth, L. Worden, A.M. Arzika, R. Maliki, A. Abdou, S. Kane, L. Zhong, S.L. Cummings, S. Sakar, C. Chen, C. Cook, E. Lebas, E.D. Chow, I. Nachamkin, T.C. Porco, J.D. Keenan, T.M. Lietman, Nat Medicine 25(): 1370-76, 2019
Blood culture utilization at an academic hospital: addressing a gap in benchmarking
Chen A, Bilker W, Hamilton K, O'Donnell J, Nachamkin I, Infect Control Hosp Epidemiol 39(11): 1353-59, 2018, PMID:30261936
Isolation of Campylobacter species from stool samples using a filtration method: assessment from a U.S. based population
Nachamkin I, Nguyen P., J Clin Microbiol 55(): 2204-7, 2017
Assessing Clinical Microbiology Practice Guidelines: American Society for Microbiology ad hoc Committee on Evidence-Based Laboratory Medicine Practice Guidelines Assessment
Nachamkin, I., Kirn, T., Westblade, L., Humphries, R., J. Clin. Microbiol. 55(): 3194-3200, 2017
Effect of a Price Transparency Intervention in the Electronic Health Record on Clinician Ordering of Inpatient Laboratory Tests: The PRICE Randomized Clinical Trial
Sedrak MS, Myers JS, Small DS, Nachamkin I, Ziemba JB, Murray D, Kurtzman GW, Zhu J, Wang W, Mincarelli D, Danoski D, Wells BP, Berns JS, Brennan PJ, Hanson CW, Dine CJ, Patel MS, JAMA Intern Med 177(7): 939-945, 2017, PMID:28430829
Evaluation of a research use only luminex based assay for measurement of procalcitonin in serum samples
Garrigan C, Han J, Tolomeo P, Johnson KJ, Master SR, Lautenbach E and Nachamkin I, Am J Translation Research 8(): 4362-69, 2016
Appropriateness of Expectorated Sputum Cultures in the Hospital Setting
Sloan CE, Bernard S, Nachamkin I., Diag Microbiol Infect Dis 83(1): 74-6, 2015, PMID:26032431
Multicenter evaluation of clinical diagnostic methods for detection and isolation of Campylobacter spp. from stool.
Fitzgerald C, Patrick M, Gonzalez A, Akin J, Polage C, Wymore K, Gillim-Ross L, Xavier K, Sadlowski J, Monahan J, Hurd S, Dahlberg S, Jerris R, Watson R, Santovenia M, Mitchell D, Harrison C, Tobin-D'Angelo M, DeMartino M, Pentella M, Leonard C, Razaq J, Jung C, Achong-Bowe R, Evans Y, Jain D, Juni B, Leano F, Robinson R, Smith S, Gittelman R, Garrigan C, Nachamkin I and Campylobacter Diagnostics Study Working Group, J Clin Microbiol 54(): 1209-1215, 2016
Gastrointestinal Infections
Alby K., Nachamkin I., Microbiology Spectrum 4(3): doi:10.1128 /microbiolspec.DMIH2-0005-2015, 2016, PMID:27337464
Distribution of Campylobacter jejuni capsular types, 2007-2012, Philadelphia, PA
Garrigan C, Attela A, Poly F, Guerry P, Nachamkin I, Diag Microbiol Infect Dis 80(): 204-206, 2014
Comparing the economic and health benefits of different approaches to diagnosing Clostridium difficile infection
Bartsch SM, Umsheid CA, Nachamkin I, Hamilton K, Lee BY., Clin Microbiol Infect 21(1): 77.e1-9, 2015, PMID:25636938
Use of a combination biomarker algorithm to identify medical intensive care unit patients with suspected sepsis at very low likelihood of bacterial infection
Han J., Nachamkin I., Coffin S., Gerber J., Fuchs B., Garrigan C., Han X., Bilker W., Wise J., Tolomeo P., Lautenbach E., Antimicrobial Agents Chemother 59(10): 6494-6500, 2015, PMID:26239984
Quinolone and macrolides resistance in Campylobacter jejuni and Campylobacter coli: A review of mechanisms and trends over time of resistance profiles in human isolates.
Engberg, J., Aarestrup, F.M., Taylor, D.E., Gerner-Smidt, P., Nachamkin, I., Emerg Infect Dis 7(): 724-734, 2001
Increasing fluoroquinolone resistance in Campylobacter jejuni, Pennsylvania, 1982-2001
Nachamkin, I., Ung, H., Li, M., Emerg Infect Dis 8(): 1501-1503, 2002
Campylobacter, 3rd edition
Nachamkin, I., Szymanski, C., Blaser, M.J. (eds), ASM Press, 2008
Patterns of Guillain-Barre syndrome in children: results from a Mexican population
Nachamkin, I., Arzarte Barbosa, P., Ung, H., Lobato, C., Gonzalez Rivera, A., Rodriguez, P., Garcia Briseno, A., Maria Cordero, L., Garcia Perea, L., Carlos Perez, J., Ribera, P. Chico Aldama, G. Davila Gutierrez, L. Flores Sarnat, M. ruiz Garcia, M., Veitch, J., Fitzgerald, C., Cornblath, D., Pinto, M.R., Griffin, J.W., Willison, H.J., Asbury, A.K, McKhann, G.M., Neurology 69(): 1665-1671, 2007, PMID:17898327
Anti-GD1a antibody distinguishes axonal from demyelinating forms of Guillain-Barre Syndrome.
Ho, T.W., Willison, H.J., Nachamkin, I., Veitch, J., Li, C.Y., Cornblath, D.R., Asbury, A.K., Griffin, J.W., McKhann, G.M., Ann. Neurol. 45(): 168-173, 1999
Campylobacter jejuni lipopolysaccharides in Guillain-Barre syndrome: molecular mimicry and host susceptibility/determinants of outcome after Campylobacter jejuni infection.
Sheikh, K.A., Nachamkin, I., Ho, T.W., Willison, H.J., Veitch, J., Li, C.Y., Cornblath, D.R., Asbury, A.K., McKhann, G.M., Griffin, J.W., Neurology 51(): 371-378, 1998
Campylobacter and Guillain Barre Syndrome
Nachamkin, I., Mishu, B., Ho., T., Clin. Microbiol. Rev. 11(): 555-567, 1998
Motor nerve terminal degeneration provides a potential mechanism for rapid recovery in Acute Motor Axonal Neuropathy after Campylobacter infection.
Ho, T.W., Hsieh, S.-T., Nachamkin, I., Willison, H.J., Sheikh, K., Kiehlbauch, J., Flanigan, K., McArthur, J.C., Cornblath, D.R., McKhann, G.M., Griffin, J.W., Neurology 48(): 717-724, 1997
Flagellin gene typing of Campylobacter jejuni by restriction fragment length polymorphism analysis
Nachamkin, I., Bohachick, K., Patton, C.M., J. Clin. Microbiol. 31(): 1531-1536, 1993, PMID:8100241
Inappropriate utilization of microbiologic tests for the diagnosis of diarrheal disease in hospitalized patients
Siegel, D., Edelstein, P.H., Nachamkin, I., J.A.M.A. 263(): 979-982, 1990
