Screening, outbreak containment crucial for infection prevention
Click Here to Manage Email Alerts
Although Candida auris and Clostridioides difficile continue to be dangerous for patients, research published throughout this year has highlighted strides made in outbreak prevention and understanding nosocomial infections.
Research published this year explored the impact of prevention bundles, environmental sampling and patient testing, and the increased risk of outbreaks spreading due to cockroaches.
Here are 12 stories about nosocomial infection outbreak and research that we reported on.
Expanded C. auris screening helps NYC hospital catch more cases
A hospital expanded its Candida auris screening protocols after discovering a colonized patient who had been there for 70 days resulting in several cases being caught that would have otherwise been missed. Read more.
Trial: 7 days of antibiotics for bloodstream infections noninferior to 14 days
Another study has shown evidence suggesting that shorter is better — this time, a 2-week course of antibiotics for bloodstream infections was safely cut in half in a multinational randomized trial without increasing 90-day mortality rates. Read more.
Investigation links cockroaches to outbreak of resistant bacteria in ICU
Cockroaches contributed to an outbreak of multidrug-resistant Enterobacter cloacae in an ICU over the course of 20 months leading researchers to the revelation that the insects can carry pathogens linked to nosocomial infections. Read more.
Q&A: Vaccine fails to prevent C. difficile infection but reduces symptom duration
Despite the failure of an experimental vaccine to prevent Clostridioides difficile infection in a phase 3 trial, Curtis J. Donskey, MD, said the vaccine was not a “failure” because it helped reduce symptom duration, which he said can reduce the need to seek medical attention and be treated. Read more.
Nasal S. aureus colonization accounts for most postoperative staph infections
Nasal colonization with Staphylococcus aureus accounted for most postoperative staph infections in a large cohort of adults who underwent surgery. Read more.
New forced-air system improves drying of endoscopes
Infection outbreaks have been linked to inadequate endoscope drying. However, researchers determined that a new forced-air system was more effective at drying — and thus cleaning —endoscopes than standard alcohol flush and air purge cycles. Read more.
Q&A: What is the ID clinician’s role in end-of-life care?
Societal forces including obesity and opioid epidemics and the availability of advanced technologies that keep patients alive such as extracorporeal membrane oxygenation and left ventricular assist devices, to name a couple, have resulted in a sicker inpatient population who frequently require ID consultation. Alison G.C. Smith, MD, MSC, and Jason E. Stout, MD, MHS, discussed the impact of ID clinicians on end-of-life care. Read more.
Comprehensive norovirus response successfully ended outbreak
After confirming reports of norovirus in a hematologic oncology and clinical trials unit, a comprehensive infection prevention plan, which included universal contact precautions, quarantine of exposed roommates, point prevalence unitwide testing, surveillance of gastrointestinal symptoms for newly admitted patients and restriction of unit admissions and transfer, was put in place, stopping further infections with no recurrence. Read more.
Active C. auris screening strategy reduced health care-associated transmission
An active screening strategy utilizing several departments including registration, nursing, the EMR informatics department and infection prevention who worked together to identify patients upon registration, flagging their chart and alerting the physician to order a screening, allowed patients with Candida auris to be rapidly identified and isolated to reduce risk of transmission in a health care facility. Read more.
Q&A: What makes pathogen reduction a promising strategy to prevent AMR and HAIs?
Although nearly all health care facilities have antimicrobial-resistant bacteria, researchers are suggesting that pathogen reduction is a promising way to lessen the threat of transmission and risk of resistance. Mihnea R. Mangalea, PhD, discussed how pathogen reduction, such as chlorhexidine bathing and nasal application of mupirocin to reduce S. aureus, lowers the risk of transmitting dangerous pathogens to other patients. Read more.
VIDEO: C. auris investigation at hospital offers 'great lessons' about containment
After identifying two cases of C. auris, researchers determined that environmental testing was important for containing outbreaks after several locations in the infected patients’ rooms were found to be contaminated. Anoshe Aslam, MPH, CIC, discussed the cases and subsequent lessons learned at the Association for Professionals in Infection Control and Epidemiology annual meeting. Watch the video.
SSI prevention bundle improved outcomes among orthopedic surgery patients
Rates of surgical site infections and mortality drastically improved after implementing a comprehensive prevention bundle that focused on antimicrobial prophylaxis. Read more.