Increase in catheter associated urinary tract infections in intensive care units at a tertiary care centre: a cause of concern

Abstract

Aim: Health-care associated infections (HAIs) affect 5-20% of patients admitted in the hospitals. Catheter-associated urinary tract infections (CAUTI) are the commonest HAIs accounting for about 35-45% of these nosocomial infections due to lack of aseptic procedures and prolonged catheterization. The spectrum and antimicrobial resistance pattern of micro-organism that cause CAUTIs vary among institutions and can change from year to year. Materials and Methods: A retrograde analysis was performed on patients with indwelling catheters admitted in medical and surgical ICU. The patient’s demographic details (name, age,sex), date of hospital admission, provisional diagnosis, treatment details, time and date of catheter insertion and removal were recorded as per CDC criteria. CAUTI was diagnosed as per CDC guidelines. Results and Conclusions: A total of 687 patients were catheterized in ICU for an aggregate of 2748 patient days. The device utilization rate was 0.66. The prevalence of CAUTI per 1000 device days was 8.73.The causative uropathogens included Candida , E.coli , Enterococcus spp . A high degree of resistance was observed in all the isolates. There is a need to introduce appropriate measures aimed at proper use of catheters, to organise more frequent suitable personnel training and emphasis on hand washing procedures.