Nosocomial infections among pediatric hematology patients: results of a retrospective incidence study at a pediatric hospital in China

The occurrence of nosocomial infections (NIs) differs in different patient populations and different hospitals, and information on NI in Chinese children patients is scarce. This study fills these research gaps by evaluating the frequency of NIs, main infection sites, and common microorganisms found in pediatric hematology patients in a general children's hospital. A retrospective study was performed by analyzing the medical records of patients with NIs. The rates of NIs were calculated on the basis of cases identified during surveillance and the number of discharges annually. One thousand six hundred and four NIs were detected in 21,456 subjects (overall rate: 7.0 episodes/100 discharges). The most commonly observed infections were respiratory tract infections (1079 cases, 67.3%), followed by gastrointestinal infections (198 cases, 12.3%), skin and soft tissue infections (161 cases, 10.0%), bloodstream infections (97 cases, 6%), and urinary tract infections (16 cases, 1%). Gram-negative bacteria were the most common pathogens, followed by Gram-positive bacteria, virus, and fungal organisms. Respiratory and gastrointestinal infections were the common NIs in pediatric hematology/oncology patients. Gram-negative bacteria were responsible for most pathogens of NIs. In future studies, the prospective use of incidence density rates and postdischarge surveillance in children patient populations would be an interesting research direction.