OBJECTIVE: As a measure of the quality of care provided
to patients in the intensive care unit, comparison of nosocomial
infection rates with those of the National Nosocomial Infection
surveillance was completed during a 3-year observation period.
DESIGN: The study design was a prospective study during 3
years between 1993 and 1995. During that period, patients at the
medical/surgical and neurosurgical intensive care units and the
high-risk nursery were surveyed for nosocomial infections.
Device use, bloodstream infection, urinary tract infection, and
ventilator-associated pneumonia nosocomial infection rates were
calculated and compared with the National Nosocomial Infection
Surveillance published rates for the same period.
SETTING: The study setting was the medical/surgical
intensive care unit, the neurosurgical intensive care unit, and
the high-risk nursery at the Jordan University Hospital.
RESULTS: Overall infection rates were 17.2 per 100
patients in the medical/surgical intensive care unit, 14.2 to
18.5 per 100 patients in the neurosurgical intensive care unit,
and 13.4 to 73.5 per 100 patients in the high-risk nursery. When
compared with the weight of the infants, these rates were 61.9
to 94 per 100 in infants weighing <1500 g, 26 to 30.8 per 100
patients in infants weighing >1500 g to 2500 g, and 11.7 to 14.4
per 100 in infants weighing >2500 g. Whereas device use was
moderate, bloodstream infection and ventilator-associated
pneumonia rates were >90th percentile for National Nosocomial
Infection Surveillance in the high-risk nursery, and urinary
tract infection was >90th percentile in the medical/surgical and
neurosurgical intensive care units. Nosocomial infections at the
intensive care units in developing countries need further
investigation and control.
Institution
Department of Pediatrics, Division of Infectious Disease, Jordan
University Hospital, Amman, Jordan.
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