Majority Of Healthcare-associated Infections Research Articles

Healthcare-associated infections among neonates and children in Pakistan: findings and the implications from a point prevalence survey

Health-care associated infections (HAIs) increase morbidity, mortality and costs. The overall prevalence of HAIs is greater in low and middle income countries due to poor resources and infrastructure, with the incidence of HAIs greater among neonates and children. There is a need to understand the current situation in Pakistan including key drivers to improve future care. Point prevalence survey (PPS) of HAIs in the children wards of 19 public sector secondary and tertiary care hospitals of Pakistan and associated key drivers. 1147 children were included in the PPS. 35.7% were neonates with 32.8% aged >1 to 5 years. 35.2% were admitted in the ICU. Peripheral, central venous and urinary catheters were present in 48%, 2.9% and 5.6% of the patients respectively. 161 HAIs from various pathogens were observed in 153 cases, giving a prevalence of 13.3%. The majority of HAIs were caused by S. aureus (31.7%) followed by K. pneumoniae (22.9%) and E. coli (17.4%). Blood stream infections were identified in 42 cases followed by lower respiratory tract infections in 35. Increased length of hospital stays and being admitted to the ICU, "rapidly fatal" patients under the McCabe and Jackson criteria, central and peripheral catheterization, and invasive mechanical ventilation were associated with higher HAIs (p < 0.001). 99.7% HAIs patients fully recovered and were discharged from the hospital. There is a high prevalence of HAIs among neonates and children admitted to health facilities in Pakistan. Infection prevention and control measures should be implemented to help prevent future HAIs.

Incidence of healthcare-associated infections in patients with fever during the first 48 hours after decannulation from veno-venous extracorporeal membrane oxygenation.

Fevers following decannulation from veno-venous extracorporeal membrane oxygenation often trigger an infectious workup; however, the yield of this workup is unknown. We investigated the incidence of post-veno-venous extracorporeal membrane oxygenation decannulation fever as well as the incidence and nature of healthcare-associated infections in this population within 48 hours of decannulation. All patients treated with veno-venous extracorporeal membrane oxygenation for acute respiratory failure who survived to decannulation between August 2014 and November 2018 were retrospectively reviewed. Trauma patients and bridge to lung transplant patients were excluded. The highest temperature and maximum white blood cell count in the 24 hours preceding and the 48 hours following decannulation were obtained. All culture data obtained in the 48 hours following decannulation were reviewed. Healthcare-associated infections included blood stream infections, ventilator-associated pneumonia, and urinary tract infections. A total of 143 patients survived to decannulation from veno-venous extracorporeal membrane oxygenation and were included in the study. In total, 73 patients (51%) were febrile in the 48 hours following decannulation. Among this cohort, seven healthcare-associated infections were found, including five urinary tract infections, one blood stream infection, and one ventilator-associated pneumonia. In the afebrile cohort (70 patients), four healthcare-associated infections were found, including one catheter-associated urinary tract infection, two blood stream infections, and one ventilator-associated pneumonia. In all decannulated patients, the majority of healthcare-associated infections were urinary tract infections (55%). No central line-associated blood stream infections were identified in either cohort. When comparing febrile to non-febrile cohorts, there was a significant difference between pre- and post-decannulation highest temperature (p < 0.001) but not maximum white blood cell count (p = 0.66 and p = 0.714) between the two groups. Among all positive culture data, the most commonly isolated organism was Klebsiella pneumoniae (41.7%) followed by Escherichia coli (33%). Median hospital length of stay and time on extracorporeal membrane oxygenation were shorter in the afebrile group compared to the febrile group; however, this did not reach a statistical difference. Fever is common in the 48 hours following decannulation from veno-venous extracorporeal membrane oxygenation. Differentiating infection from non-infectious fever in the post-decannulation veno-venous extracorporeal membrane oxygenation population remains challenging. In our febrile post-decannulation cohort, the incidence of healthcare-associated infections was low. The majority were diagnosed with a urinary tract infection. We believe obtaining cultures in febrile patients in the immediate decannulation period from veno-venous extracorporeal membrane oxygenation has utility, and even in the absence of other clinical suspicion, should be considered. However, based on our data, a urinalysis and urine culture may be sufficient as an initial work up to identify the source of infection.

From ‘one size fits all’ to personalized infection prevention

One hundred years ago, many healthcare- associated infections (HAIs) had an exogenous origin, which means they were caused by micro-organisms from other patients, healthcare workers or the hospital environment. A smaller proportion was due to endogenous micro-organisms from the patients' own microbial flora. Meanwhile, many improvements have been achieved. The majority of devices used for diagnosing and treating the patients are now single- use items. The disinfection and sterilization measures used for reprocessing the remaining devices are on a very high safety level (at least in high-income countries) and cross- transmission via instruments is a very rare seldom event. Hand hygiene has also improved substantially. We have observed an increase in hand rub consumption of more than 100% during the last 12 years in Germany. For these measures the 'one size fits all approach' is appropriate because they have to be applied for all patients independent of their diseases and pathogens. Today, we see a small percentage of exogenous HAIs. The majority of HAI have an endogenous origin. Of course, it is still necessary to focus on basic or standard infection-control measures to prevent transmission of micro-organisms. However, the majority of HAIs have an endogenous origin now. Thus our measures should not only focus on preventing transmission of microorganisms, but also on prevention of infections. Therefore, a personalized infection prevention approach is now appropriate and examples will be presented.

Genome investigations show host adaptation and transmission of LA-MRSA CC398 from pigs into Danish healthcare institutions

Over the last decade, an increasing number of infections with livestock-associated methicillin-resistant Staphylococcus aureus of clonal complex 398 (LA-MRSA CC398) in persons without contact to livestock has been registered in Denmark. These infections have been suggested to be the result of repeated spillover of random isolates from livestock into the community. However, other studies also found emerging sub-lineages spreading among humans. Based on genome-wide SNPs and genome-wide association studies (GWAS), we assessed the population structure and genomic content of Danish LA-MRSA CC398 isolates from healthcare-associated infections from 2014 to 2016 (n = 73) and compared these to isolates from pigs in Denmark from 2014 (n = 183). Phylogenetic analyses showed that most human isolates were closely related to and scattered among pig isolates showing that the majority of healthcare-associated infections are the result of repeated spillover from pig farms, even though cases of human-to-human transmission also were identified. GWAS revealed frequent loss of antimicrobial resistance genes and acquisition of human-specific virulence genes in the human isolates showing adaptation in response to changes in selective pressures in different host environments, which over time could lead to the emergence of LA-MRSA CC398 lineages more adapted to human colonization and transmission.

Do bacteria isolated from ICU patients 'ESKAPE' antibiotic treatment? In vitro susceptibility of the Enterobacteriaceae family to tigecycline.

Enterobacteriaceae are currently causing the majority of healthcare-associated infections (HAI) and simultaneously expressing increasing levels of antibiotic resistance. The purpose of this study is to assess the in vitro sensitivity of MDR strains from the family Enterobacteriaceae to tigecycline in relation to their origin from patients hospitalized in intensive care units (ICUs) and non-ICUs. The study involved 156 clinically significant strains of the Enterobacteriaceae family isolated from patients with complicated intraabdominal infections (cIAIs) and/or complicated skin and skin structure infections (cSSSIs) hospitalized in ICUs and other surgical departments. Tigecycline MICs were determined by Etest. The highest percentage of tigecycline non-susceptible (intermediate + resistant strains) in vitro strains among the Enterobacteriaceae species were observed for Serratia spp. 77.3%, followed by Citrobacter spp. (76.9%) and Enterobacter spp. (70%); whereas K. pneumoniae and E. coli showed 73-73.8% tigecycline susceptibility rates. Tigecycline demonstrates a high level of antimicrobial in vitro activity when tested against E. coli and K. pneumoniae, even those with the ESBL-phenotype. Tigecycline retained activity against merely 22-30% of Enterobacter, Citrobacter and Serratia genera.

Device-associated infections at a level-1 trauma centre of a developing nation: impact of automated surveillance, training and feedbacks.

Device-associated infections constitute the majority of health care-associated infections (HAIs) in ICUs. Trauma patients are predisposed to acquire such infections due to various trauma-related factors. The prevalence of HAIs is underreported from developing nations due to a lack of systematic surveillance. This study reports the impact of an intensive surveillance on the rates and outcome of device-associated infections in trauma patients from a developing country and compares the rates with a previous pilot observation. The study was conducted at a level-1 trauma centre of India. Surveillance for ventilator-associated pneumonia (VAP), central line-associated blood stream infections (CLA-BSIs) and catheter-associated urinary tract infections (CA-UTIs) was done based on centre for disease control-National Healthcare Safety Network (CDC-NHSN) definitions. The impact of an intensive surveillance, education and awareness drive on the rates of infections over the study period, and compliance to preventive bundles and hand hygiene was assessed. A total of 15,462 ventilator days, 12,207 central line days and 17,740 urinary catheter days were recorded in the study population. The overall rates of VAP, CLA-BSI and CA-UTI were respectively 17, 7.2 and 15.5/1000 device days. There was a significant correlation between device days and the propensity to develop infections. Infections were the cause of death in 36.6% of fatal trauma cases. A significantly higher rate of VAP, CLA-BSI and CA-UTIs was noted in fatal cases. The compliance to ventilator bundle, central line bundle, bladder bundle and hand hygiene were 74.5%, 86%, 79.3% and 64.6%, respectively. A high rate of multi-drug-resistance was observed in all pathogens. A gross reduction in the rates of all infections was observed over time during the study due to implementation of a stringent surveillance system, feedbacks and education. The compliance to hand hygiene and preventive bundles also increased over time. The automated surveillance was easy and useful for data entry and analysis. Surveillance had a significant impact on reduction of HAIs and mortality in trauma patients.