News from the U.S. Centers for Disease Control and Prevention (CDC): 1 in 4 catheter- and surgery-related HAIs caused by six resistant bacteria in long-term hospitals
America is doing a better job of preventing
healthcare-associated infections (HAIs), but more work is needed – especially
in fighting antibiotic-resistant bacteria. The Centers for Disease Control and
Prevention’s (CDC) latest Vital Signs report urges healthcare workers to use a
combination of infection control recommendations to better protect patients
from these infections.
“New data show that far too many patients are getting
infected with dangerous, drug-resistant bacteria in healthcare settings,” said
CDC Director Tom Frieden, M.D., M.P.H. “Doctors and healthcare facilities have
the power to protect patients – no one should get sick while trying to get
well.”
Many of the most urgent and serious antibiotic-resistant
bacteria threaten patients while they are being
treated in healthcare facilities for other conditions, and may lead to sepsis or death. In acute care hospitals, 1 in 7 catheter- and
surgery-related HAIs can be caused by any of the six antibiotic-resistant
bacteria listed below. That number increases to 1 in 4 infections in long-term
acute care hospitals, which treat patients who are generally very sick and
stay, on average, more than 25 days.
The six antibiotic-resistant threats examined are:
- Carbapenem-resistant Enterobacteriaceae (CRE)
- Methicillin-resistant Staphylococcus aureus (MRSA)
- ESBL-producing Enterobacteriaceae (extended-spectrum β-lactamases)
- Vancomycin-resistant Enterococcus (VRE)
- Multidrug-resistant Pseudomonas aeruginosa
- Multidrug-resistant Acinetobacter
Posted by Dr. Tim Sandle