Nosocomial bloodstream infection in a tertiary care paediatric intensive care unit

Objective: To determine the frequency, causative organisms and susceptibility pattern of nosocomial bloodstream infections in children. Study Design: Observational study. Place and Duration of Study: Paediatric Intensive Care Unit of the Children's Hospital, Lahore, from January to December 2004. Patients and Methods: All children admitted to the unit during the study period were daily evaluated for features suggestive of nosocomial infection. In addition to other investigations, blood cultures were done in all suspected cases for the confirmation of nosocomial bloodstream infection (BSI). Nosocomial infection was defined according to the criteria set by Centre for Disease Control and Prevention. Demographic, microbiological and other variables were carefully studied to analyze frequency, incidence rate, spectrum of isolates and susceptibility pattern. Children with and without nosocomial BSI were compared with regard to age, duration of stay in hospital, need and duration of ventilation and the outcome. Results: Of the total 406 admissions, 134 children were suspected to have nosocomial infection on at least 214 occasions (episodes). Blood cultures yielded growth of pathological organisms in 62 of these episodes, giving the frequency of nosocomial BSI as 15.2 per 100 admissions (62/406 episodes). Children with nosocomial bloodstream infection were found to have younger mean age (2.1 vs. 4.1 years), longer average duration of stay (13.1 vs. 6.6 days), more frequent need for ventilation (64% vs. 34%) and longer duration of ventilation (9.7 vs. 4.8 days). Majority of isolates (77%) were gram-negative bacteria; Klebsiella being the most common isolate (n= 23). Aztreonam, Ceftiazidime, Ceforuxime and Ciprofloxacin showed high resistance pattern (33-50%). Isolates showed good sensitivity to Vancomycin (100%), Imipenem (80%), Meropenem (100%) and Co-amoxiclav (88%). Conclusion: The frequency of nosocomial BSI in the observed setting was quite high, having marked impact on the duration of stay and outcome. Emergence of resistant pathogens is alarming.     

Nosocomial infections in the intensive care unit

Nosocomial infection in the intensive care unit (ICU) is associated with increased mortality, morbidity and length of stay. It is defined as infection that begins 48 hours after admission to hospital. The commonest types are ventilator-associated pneumonia (VAP), central line-associated bloodstream infection (CLABSI), urinary catheter-related infection and surgical site infection. The common pathogens include Staphylococcus aureus, Pseudomonas aeruginosa, Candida, Escherichia coli and Klebsiella species. Antimicrobial resistance is increasing and has emerged from selective pressure from antibiotic use and transmission via health workers. Prevention of infection is fundamental and can be achieved through good antimicrobial use and infection control, including hand hygiene. Grouped, easy-to-follow best practice activities called ‘care bundles’ have been developed to prevent VAP and CLABSI. Microbiological cultures are central to rapid and accurate diagnosis, which improves outcomes and reduces resistance. The principles of treatment include early antimicrobial therapy (after appropriate specimens are taken) targeted to the local microbes, then de-escalation according to culture and susceptibility results. This article summarizes the pathogenesis, risk factors, microbiology, diagnosis, prevention and treatment of VAP, CLABSI and nosocomial urinary tract infection in the adult ICU.     

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目的 了解外科重症监护病房（SICU）中医院获得性感染（nosocomial infection,NI)的流行病学规律。指导临床防治。方法 对SICU1996年1月至2000年12月间181例NI情况进行回顾性分析。结果 平均感染率9.81%,常见感染部位是呼吸道（36.96%)、胸腹腔（25.47%)和血行感染（9.32%),各部位主要病原菌种类具有统计学差异,呼吸道、胸腹腔和胆道以细菌为主,泌尿道和消化道以真菌为主,混合感染52.25%。常见病原菌是肠球菌、耐甲氧西林的葡萄球菌、铜绿假单胞菌、大肠埃希杆菌、白色念珠菌和热带念珠菌。结论 SICU内NI主要病原菌因感染部位而不同,菌种复杂,耐药菌株多,应建立相应的监控制度,掌握病原菌变化规律,现有效地预防和治疗ICU内获得性感染。     

Continuous infusion of rocuronium in a paediatric intensive care unit

Purpose  

To evaluate prospectively the efficacy and dose requirements of rocuronium administered by continuous infusion for neuromuscular blockade in a paediatric ICU population.     

Sedation and analgesia in the paediatric intensive care unit

Sedation and analgesia are a constant challenging issue in paediatric intensive care units, for ethical reasons among others. Basically, goals and available treatments in that context do not differ from those in adults. For instance, while we propose midazolam as the first choice benzodiazepine, there is no evidence for encouraging the use of one morphinomimetic rather than others in children. On the other hand, numerous paediatric specificities do exist: understanding and expression of pain both different and difficult, presence and involvement of the parents, pain assessment methods, pharmacology, pathologies. It is therefore mandatory to know these specificities to ensure a proper use of evaluation tools and therapeutics. The paucity of strong evidence from the literature does not allow producing definitive consensus guidelines. However, some practices can be highlighted such as the use of written protocol on pain/sedation evaluation and therapeutics adapted to children, literature data and local habits, the training of medical/nursing staff and the constitution of local referring team. A particular attention should be paid to propofol: its use longer than several hours should be strongly discouraged in infants and children due to the risk of Propofol Infusion Syndrome. Further clinical studies should be conducted in an attempt to provide answers to routine, daily issues and questions, for example, how to tailor the level of sedation to the needs of the patient, how to stop it, which drug must be preferred or what place for non-pharmacological approaches.     

Nosocomial infection characteristics in a burn intensive care unit: Analysis of an eleven-year active surveillance

Aims

The objective of this study was to describe nosocomial infection (NI) rates, risk factors, etiologic agents, antibiotic susceptibility, invasive device utilization and invasive device associated infection rates in a burn intensive care unit (ICU) in Turkey.

Methods

Prospective surveillance of nosocomial infections was performed according to Centers for Disease Control and Prevention (CDC) and National Healthcare Safety Network (NHSN) criteria between 2001 and 2012. The data was analyzed retrospectively.

Results

During the study period 658 burn patients were admitted to our burn ICU. 469 cases acquired 602 NI for an overall NI rate of 23.1 per 1000 patient days. 109 of all the cases (16.5%) died. Pseudomonas aeruginosa (241), Acinetobacter baumannii (186) and Staphylococcus aureus (69) were the most common identified bacteria in 547 strains.

Conclusion

Total burn surface area, full thickness burn, older age, presence of inhalation injury were determined to be the significant risk factors for acquisition of NI. Determining the NI profile at a certain burn ICU can lead the medical staff apply the appropriate treatment regimen and limit the drug resistance. Eleven years surveillance report presented here provides a recent data about the risk factors of NI in a Turkish burn ICU.     

Respiratory infection in an intensive care unit.

A postmortem bacteriological study of Black children in a respiratory intensive care unit showed that Pseudomonas aeruginosa was the most common opportunistic pathogen and that it usually complicated a viral infection. In a parallel study of non-debilitated patients in general hospital wards Klebsiella aerogenes and Escherichia coli were the most frequently isolated organisms. Counter-immuno-electrophoresis was used for the identification of Pseudomonas-precipitating antibody in serum and tracheal secretions, and also of Pseudomonas antigen in the latter.     

Starting experience with non-invasive ventilation in paediatric intensive care unit

Non-invasive ventilation in pressure support (NIV) is well described in the adult and child over 5 years. However, its use in children less than 1 year of age remains anecdotal. We report our preliminary experience with the use of NIV in six children aged from 5 days to 10 months. NIV was delivered with a flow generator (VPAP IIST, Resmed Ltd, North Ryde, NSW, Australia) in association with specific tubings and a nasal mask. The use of NIV resulted in a significant decrease of both the respiratory rate (from 53 to 39 breaths per min, p < 0.01) and the PvCO(2) (from 9.33 to 6.28 kPa, p < 0.01). These results show that NIV can be used in children under 1 year of age with improvement of physiological parameters.     

Nosocomial infections in the surgical intensive care unit: a difference between trauma and surgical patients.

In 1970, the Centers for Disease Control and Prevention (CDC) established the National Nosocomial Infection Surveillance System to assist institutions with infection surveillance, data collection, and processing. This facilitates interinstitutional comparison for nosocomial infection rates. Nosocomial infection rates in the surgical intensive care unit have been shown to be different from the medical intensive care unit. Whether there exists a difference in infection rates between trauma and surgical patients in the intensive care unit has not been established. Our objective was to determine whether there is a difference in rates of nosocomial infections between trauma and surgical patients in the surgical intensive care unit. From January 1995 through December 1997, we reviewed 3715 admissions to the surgical intensive care unit and separated them into trauma (1272) or surgical (2443) cases. We documented all nosocomial pneumonias, urinary tract infections, bloodstream infections, and surgical site infections. From these data we determined infection rates per 100 admissions. We also identified all device-related nosocomial infections and calculated infection rate by current CDC standards using number of device infections divided by number of device-days times 1000. We found that the overall trauma patient infection rate was 11.64 per cent compared with 6.43 per cent for surgical patients (P<.001). Using conventional infection rate criteria, trauma patients had higher frequency in the rate of ventilator-associated pneumonia (6.13% vs. 2.50%; P<0.001), urinary tract infection (2.36 versus 1.76; P<0.2), and bloodstream infection (2.52% versus 1.27%; P<0.01). However, when using the CDC guidelines, which correct for the number of device-days for infections, only the difference in rate of pneumonia between the two groups reached statistical significance (23.9 rate for trauma patients vs. 16.7 for the surgery group; P<0.005). We conclude that trauma patients are at higher risk for nosocomial infections than routine surgical patients. Because of this difference, centers should collect and report data separately for trauma and surgical patients in the intensive care unit. Specific attention should be focused on the causes and prevention of increased rates of nosocomial pneumonia in trauma patients.     

Aetiology and outcome of severe community-acquired pneumonia in children admitted to a paediatric intensive care unit.

OBJECTIVE: To determine the aetiological agents and outcome of severe community-acquired pneumonia (SCAP) in children admitted to the paediatric intensive care unit (PICU) at Kalafong Hospital, Pretoria. PATIENTS AND METHODS: An audit was done after a protocol was implemented to identify the aetiological agents in children with life-threatening SCAP admitted to the PICU from the emergency room. The following investigations were done as per protocol: blood culture, culture of the tracheal aspirate, immunofluorescence and culture of the nasopharyngeal aspirate, microscopy and culture of the gastric juice for Mycobacterium tuberculosis, and determination of HIV status. The following data, documented prospectively, were obtained from patient records: date of admission, age, gender, weight, duration of ventilation, duration of stay in the PICU, survival or death, and severity of illness as determined by means of the score for acute neonatal physiology (SNAP) or paediatric risk of mortality (PRISM) score depending on the child's age. RESULTS: Twenty-three children were admitted over a 1-year period (1 November 1994-30 October 1995). Their median age was 10 weeks (range 2 weeks-5 years) and the sex distribution was equal. Two children were HIV-infected. Twenty children received mechanical ventilation for a median period of 6.5 days (range 2-16 days). Aetiological agents were identified in 15/23 children (65%). Respiratory syncytial virus (RSV) was the most common pathogen, identified in 7/23 children, Klebsiella pneumoniae was the most common bacterial pathogen, identified in 5 children (2 blood cultures and 3 tracheal aspirates). Tuberculosis was not diagnosed. The mean PRISM score was similar in survivors and children who died. The case fatality rate was 30%. The 7 children who died had a median arterial oxygen tension/fraction of inspired oxygen (PaO2/FiO2) ratio of 94 (range 32-111) and the 16 survivors had a median ratio of 146 (range 51-252) (P = 0.01) on admission. Both HIV-infected children died and postmortem examination showed a pneumonia due to Pneumocystis carinii and cytomegalovirus. CONCLUSIONS: SCAP occurs in very young children. One or more pathogens were isolated in 65% of cases. Viral pathogens predominated, with RSV being the most common. The yield of positive blood cultures was low at 17%. Streptococcus pneumoniae and Haemophilus influenzae were not found. The case fatality rate was 30% and death was more likely with a low PaO2/FiO2 ratio on admission.     

Unplanned extubation in a paediatric intensive care unit: impact of a quality improvement programme

Unplanned tracheal extubation is an important quality issue in current medical practice as it is a common occurrence in paediatric intensive care units. We have assessed the effectiveness of a continuous quality improvement programme in reducing the incidence of unplanned extubation over a 5‐year period. After a 2‐year baseline period, we developed action plans to address the issues identified. Following implementation of the programme, the overall incidence of unplanned extubation decreased from 2.9 unplanned extubations per 100 intubated patient days in the first year to 0.6 in the last year (p = 0.0001). This reduction was the result of a decrease in unplanned extubation in children younger than 2 years of age. Although mortality was similar to that of children who did not experience an unplanned extubation, those with an unplanned extubation had a significantly longer duration of mechanical ventilation, longer stay in the intensive care unit, and longer hospital stay. We found that the implementation of a continuous quality improvement programme is effective in reducing the overall incidence of unplanned extubations.