To determine relative rates of blood culture contamination for 3 skin antisepsis interventions—10% povidone iodine aqueous solution (PI), 2% iodine tincture (IT), and 2% chlorhexidine gluconate in 70% isopropyl alcohol (CHG)—when used by dedicated phlebotomy teams to obtain peripheral blood cultures.

Randomized crossover trial with hospital floor as the unit of randomization.

Teaching hospital with 885 beds.

All adult patients undergoing peripheral blood culture collection on 3 medical-surgical floors from May 2009 through September 2009.

Each antisepsis intervention was used for 5 months on each study floor, with random crossover after a 1-month washout period. Phlebotomy teams collected all peripheral blood cultures. Each positive blood culture was adjudicated by physicians blinded to the intervention and scored as a true positive or contaminated blood culture. The primary outcome was the rate of blood culture contamination for each antisepsis agent.

In total, 12,904 peripheral blood culture sets were evaluated, of which 735 (5.7%) were positive. There were 98 contaminated cultures, representing 13.3% of all positive cultures. The overall blood culture contamination rate for the study population was 0.76%. Intent-to-treat rates of contaminated blood cultures were not significantly different among the 3 antiseptics (P = .18), yielding 0.58% with PI (95% confidence interval [CI], 0.38%-0.86%), 0.76% with IT (95% CI, 0.52%-1.07%), and 0.93% with CHG (95% CI, 0.67%-1.27%).

Choice of antiseptic agent does not impact contamination rates when blood cultures are obtained by a phlebotomy team and should, therefore, be based on costs or preference.

ClinicalTrials.gov identifier: NCT01216761.

Reduce the frequency of contaminated blood cultures that meet National Healthcare Safety Network definitions for a central line-associated bloodstream infection (CLABSI).

An observational study.

A 500-bed university-affiliated hospital.

A new blood culture policy discouraged drawing blood samples from central lines. Phlebotomists were reeducated regarding aseptic technique when obtaining blood samples by venipuncture. The intravenous therapy team was taught how to draw blood samples by venipuncture and served as a backup when phlebotomists were unable to obtain blood samples. A 2-nurse protocol and a special supply kit for obtaining blood samples from catheters were developed. Rates of blood culture contamination were monitored by the microbiology laboratory.

The proportion of blood samples obtained for culture from central lines decreased from 10.9% during January–June 2010 to 0.4% during July–December 2012 (P< .001). The proportion of blood cultures that were contaminated decreased from 84 (1.6%) of 5,274 during January–June 2010 to 21 (0.5%) of 4,245 during January–June 2012 (P< .001). Based on estimated excess hospital costs of $3,000 per contaminated blood culture, the reduction in blood culture contaminants yielded an estimated annualized savings of $378,000 in 2012 when compared to 2010. In mid-2010, 3 (30%) of 10 reported CLABSIs were suspected to represent blood culture contamination compared with none of 6 CLABSIs reported from mid-November 2010 through June 2012 (P = 0.25).

Multiple interventions resulted in a reduction in blood culture contamination rates and substantial cost savings to the hospital, and they may have reduced the number of reportable CLABSIs.

To evaluate the application of the National Healthcare Safety Network (NHSN) central line-associated bloodstream infection (CLABSI) definition in pediatric intensive care units (PICUs) and pediatric hematology/oncology units (PHOUs) participating in a multicenter quality improvement collaborative to reduce CLABSIs; to identify sources of variability in the application of the definition.

Online survey using 18 standardized case scenarios. Each described a positive blood culture in a patient and required a yes-or-no answer to the question “Is this a CLABSI?” NHSN staff responses were the reference standard.

Sixty-five US PICUs and PHOUs.

Staff who routinely adjudicate CLABSIs using NHSN definitions.

Sixty responses were received from 58 (89%) of 65 institutions; 78% of respondents were infection preventionists, infection control officers, or infectious disease physicians. Responses matched those of NHSN staff for 78% of questions. The mean (SE) percentage of concurring answers did not differ for scenarios evaluating application of 1 of the 3 criteria (“known pathogen,” 78% [1.7%]; “skin contaminant, >1 year of age,” 76% [SE, 2.5%]; “skin contaminant, ≤1 year of age,” 81% [3.8%]; P = .3 ). The mean percentage of concurring answers was lower for scenarios requiring respondents to determine whether a CLABSI was present or incubating on admission (64% [4.6%]; P = .017) or to distinguish between primary and secondary bacteremia (65% [2.5%]; P = .021).

The accuracy of application of the CLABSI definition was suboptimal. Efforts to reduce variability in identifying CLABSIs that are present or incubating on admission and in distinguishing primary from secondary bloodstream infection are needed.

To describe the course and management of a protracted outbreak after intercontinental transfer of 2 patients colonized with multidrug-resistant Acinetobacter baumannii (MDRAB).

An 18-month outbreak investigation.

An 860-bed university hospital in France.

Case patients (ie, carriers) were those colonized or infected with an MDRAB isolate.

During the epidemic period, all intensive care unit (ICU) patients and contacts of carriers who were transferred to wards were screened for MDRAB carriage. Contact precautions, environmental screening, and auditing of healthcare worker (HCW) practices were implemented; rooms were cleaned with hydrogen peroxide mist disinfection. One ICU, in which most of the cases occurred, was closed on 4 occasions for thorough cleaning and disinfection.

The 2 index case patients were identified as 2 patients who carried the same MDRAB strain and who were admitted to the hospital after repatriation from Tahiti 5 months apart. During an 18-month period, a total of 84 secondary cases occurred. Reintroduction of MDRAB into the ICUs occurred from patients previously colonized or from healthcare personnel. Termination of the outbreak was only achieved when all carriers from wards or the ICU were cohorted to an isolation unit with dedicated healthcare personnel.

Intercontinental transfer of carriers of MDRAB can result in extensive outbreaks and serious disruption of the hospital's organization. Transmission from carriers most likely occurred via the hands of HCWs, poor cleaning protocols, airborne spread, and contaminated water from sink traps. This protracted outbreak was controlled only after implementation of an extensive control program and eventual cohorting of all carriers in an isolation unit with dedicated healthcare personnel.

To evaluate the impact of state laws on reporting of healthcare-associated infections on central line-associated bloodstream infection (CLABSI) rates.

Retrospective, cross-sectional study.

Hospital-level administrative and Hospital Compare data were collected on University HealthSystem Consortium hospitals. An ordered probit regression model assessed the association between state legislation and CLABSI standardized infection ratio (SIR). The main independent variable was a state legislation variable concerning 3 legal requirements (data submission, reporting of data to the public, inclusion of facility identifiers in public reports) and was coded for hospitals accordingly located in a state that did not have CLABSI reporting, located in a state that had CLABSI reporting legislation and met 3 legal requirements, or located in a state that had CLABSI reporting but did not meet the 3 legal requirements. A secondary analysis ascertained whether the mean state SIR values differed among the 3 legislation groups.

There were 159 hospitals included; 92 were located in states that had CLABSI reporting and met 3 requirements, 33 were located in states that had reporting but did not meet the 3 requirements, and 34 were in states that had no legislation. There was no effect of state legislation group on CLABSI SIR. There were no significant differences in the mean state CLABSI SIRs among the legislation groups.

In this sample of academic medical centers, there was no evidence of an effect of state HAI laws on CLABSI occurrence. The impact of state legislation may be lessened by other CLABSI prevention initiatives.

To identify factors associated with hand hygiene compliance during a multiyear period of intervention.

Observational study.

A 719-bed tertiary care teaching hospital.

Nursing, physician, technical, and support staff.

Light-duty staff performed hand hygiene observations during the period July 2008-December 2012. Infection control implemented hospital-wide hand hygiene initiatives, including education modules; posters and table tents; feedback to units, medical directors and the executive board; and an increased number of automated alcohol hand hygiene product dispensers.

There were 161,526 unique observations; overall compliance was 83%. Significant differences in compliance were observed between physician staff (78%) and support staff (69%) compared with nursing staff (84%). Pediatric units (84%) and intensive care units (84%) had higher compliance than did medical (82%) and surgical units (81%). These findings persisted in the controlled multivariate model for noncompliance. Additional factors found to be significant in the model included greater compliance when healthcare workers were leaving patient rooms, when the patient was under contact precautions, and during the evening shift. The overall rate of compliance increased from 60% in the first year of observation to a peak of 96% in the fourth year, and it decreased to 89% in the final year, with significant improvements occurring in each of the 4 professional categories.

A multipronged hand hygiene initiative is effective in increasing compliance rates among all categories of hospital workers. We identified a variety of factors associated with increased compliance. Additionally, we note the importance of continuous interventions in maintaining high compliance rates.

Measurement of central line-associated bloodstream infection (CLABSI) rates outside of intensive care units is challenged by the difficulty in reliably determining central venous catheter (CVC) use. The National Healthcare Safety Network (NHSN) allows for use of electronic data for determination of CVC-days, but validation of electronic data has not been studied systematically.

To design and validate a process to reliably measure CVC-days outside of the intensive care units that leverages electronic documentation.

Thirty-four inpatient wards at 2 academic hospitals using a common electronic platform for nursing documentation were studied. Electronic queries were created to capture patient and CVC information, and tools and processes for tracking and reporting errors in documentation were developed. Strategies to validate electronic data included comparisons with manual CVC-day determinations and automated data validation using customized tools. Interventions included redesign of documentation interface, real-time audit with feedback of errors, and education. The primary outcome was patient-level total error rate in electronic CVC-day measurement compared with manually counted CVC-days.

At baseline, there were a mean (± standard deviation) of 0.32 ± 0.25 electronic CVC-day errors (omission and commission errors summed and counted equally) per manually counted CVC-day. After several process improvement cycles over 7 months, the error rate decreased to <0.05 errors per CVC-day and remained at or below this level for 2 years.

Baseline electronic CVC-day counts had a high error rate. Stepwise interventions reduced errors to consistently low levels. Validation of electronic calculation of CVC-days is essential to ensure accuracy, particularly if these data will be used for interinstitutional comparison.

To describe the epidemiology of infections related to the use of implantable central venous access devices (CVADs) in cancer patients and to evaluate measures aimed at reducing the rates of such infections.

Prospective cohort study.

Referral hospital for cancer in São Paulo, Brazil.

We prospectively evaluated all implantable CVADs employed between January 2009 and December 2011. Inpatients and outpatients were followed until catheter removal, transfer to another facility, or death.

Outcome measures were bloodstream infection and pocket infection. We also evaluated the effects that the creation of a multidisciplinary team for CVAD care, avoiding in-hospital implantation of CVADs, and limiting CVAD insertion in neutropenic patients have on the rates of such infections.

During the study period, 966 CVADs (mostly venous ports) were implanted in 933 patients, for a combined total of 243,792 catheter-days. We identified 184 episodes of infection: 154 (84%) were bloodstream infections, 21 (11%) were pocket infections, and 9 (5%) were surgical site infections. During the study period, the rate of CVAD-related infection dropped from 2.2 to 0.24 per 1,000 catheter-days (P < .001). Multivariate analysis revealed that relevant risk factors for such infection include surgical reintervention, implantation in a neutropenic patient, in-hospital implantation, use of a cuffed catheter, and nonchemotherapy indication for catheter use.

Establishing a multidisciplinary team specifically focused on CVAD care, together with systematic reporting of infections, appears to reduce the rates of infection related to the use of these devices.

Antimicrobial stewardship programs (ASPs) are recommended to optimize antimicrobial use for hospitalized patients. Although mechanisms for the implementation of ASPs have been described, data-driven approaches to prioritize specific conditions and antimicrobials for intervention have not been established. We aimed to develop a strategy for identifying high-impact targets for antimicrobial stewardship efforts.

Retrospective cross-sectional study.

Children admitted to 32 freestanding children's hospitals in the United States in 2010.

We identified the conditions with the largest proportional contribution to the total days of antibiotic therapy prescribed to all hospitalized children. For the 4 highest-using conditions, we examined variability between hospitals in antibiotic selection patterns for use of either first- or second-line therapies depending on the condition. Antibiotic use was determined using standardized probability of exposure to selected agents and standardized days of therapy per 1,000 patient-days, adjusting for patient demographics and severity of illness.

In 2010, 524,364 children received 2,082,929 days of antibiotic therapy. Surgical patients received 43% of all antibiotics. The 4 highest-using conditions—pneumonia, appendicitis, cystic fibrosis, and skin and soft-tissue infection—represent 1% of all conditions yet accounted for more than 10% of all antibiotic use. Wide variability in antibiotic use occurred for 3 of these 4 conditions.

Antibiotic use in children's hospitals varied broadly across institutions when examining diagnoses individually and adjusting for severity of illness. Identifying conditions with both frequent and variable antimicrobial use informs the prioritization of high-impact targets for future antimicrobial stewardship interventions.

Effective disinfection of hospital rooms after discharge of patients with Clostridium difficile infection (CDI) is necessary to prevent transmission. We evaluated the impact of sequential cleaning and disinfection interventions by culturing high-touch surfaces in CDI rooms after cleaning.

Prospective intervention.

A Veterans Affairs hospital.

During a 21-month period, 3 sequential tiered interventions were implemented: (1) fluorescent markers to provide monitoring and feedback on thoroughness of cleaning facility-wide, (2) addition of an automated ultraviolet radiation device for adjunctive disinfection of CDI rooms, and (3) enhanced standard disinfection of CDI rooms, including a dedicated daily disinfection team and implementation of a process requiring supervisory assessment and clearance of terminally cleaned CDI rooms. To determine the impact of the interventions, cultures were obtained from CDI rooms after cleaning and disinfection.

The fluorescent marker intervention improved the thoroughness of cleaning of high-touch surfaces (from 47% to 81% marker removal; P < .0001). Relative to the baseline period, the prevalence of positive cultures from CDI rooms was reduced by 14% (P = .024), 48% (P>.001), and 89% (P = .006) with interventions 1, 2, and 3, respectively. During the baseline period, 67% of CDI rooms had positive cultures after disinfection, whereas during interventions periods 1, 2, and 3 the percentages of CDI rooms with positive cultures after disinfection were reduced to 57%, 35%, and 7%, respectively.

An intervention that included formation of a dedicated daily disinfection team and implementation of a standardized process for clearing CDI rooms achieved consistent CDI room disinfection. Culturing of CDI rooms provides a valuable tool to drive improvements in environmental disinfection.

To determine whether antimicrobial (AM) courses ordered with an antimicrobial computer decision support system (CDSS) were more likely to be appropriate than courses ordered without the CDSS.

Retrospective cohort study. Blinded expert reviewers judged whether AM courses were appropriate, considering drug selection, route, dose, and duration.

A 279-bed university-affiliated Department of Veterans Affairs (VA) hospital.

A 500-patient random sample of inpatients who received a therapeutic AM course between October 2007 and September 2008.

An optional CDSS, available at the point of order entry in the VA computerized patient record system.

CDSS courses were significantly more likely to be appropriate (111/254, 44%) compared with non-CDSS courses (81/246, 33%, P = .013). Courses were more likely to be appropriate when the initial provider diagnosis of the condition being treated was correct (168/273, 62%) than when it was incorrect, uncertain, or a sign or symptom rather than a disease (24/227, 11%, P< .001). In multivariable analysis, CDSS-ordered courses were more likely to be appropriate than non-CDSS-ordered courses (odds ratio [OR], 1.83; 95% confidence interval [CI], 1.13–2.98). Courses were also more likely to be judged appropriate when the initial provider diagnosis of the condition being treated was correct than when it was incorrect, uncertain, or a sign or symptom rather than a disease (OR, 3.56; 95% CI, 1.4-9.0).

Use of the CDSS was associated with more appropriate AM use. To achieve greater improvements, strategies are needed to improve provider diagnoses of syndromes that are infectious or possibly infectious.

To quantify and characterize overall antimicrobial use, including appropriateness of indication, among patients receiving chronic hemodialysis.

Retrospective and prospective observational study.

Two outpatient hemodialysis units.

All patients receiving chronic hemodialysis.

The rate of parenteral antimicrobial use (number of doses per 100 patient-months) was calculated retrospectively from September 2008 through July 2011. Indication and appropriateness of antimicrobial doses were characterized prospectively from August 2010 through July 2011. Inappropriate administration was defined as occasions when criteria for infection based on national guidelines were not met, failure to choose a more narrow-spectrum antimicrobial on the basis of culture data, or occasions when indications for surgical prophylaxis were not met.

Over the 35-month retrospective study period, the rate of parenteral antimicrobial use was 32.9 doses per 100 patient-months. Vancomycin was the most commonly prescribed antimicrobial, followed by cefazolin and third- or fourth-generation cephalosporins. Over the 12-month prospective study, 1,003 antimicrobial doses were prescribed. Among the 926 (92.3%) doses for which an indication for administration was available, 276 (29.8%) were classified as inappropriate. Of these, a total of 146 (52.9%) did not meet criteria for infection, 74 (26.8%) represented failure to choose a more narrow-spectrum antimicrobial, and 56 (20.3%) did not meet criteria for surgical prophylaxis. The most common inappropriately prescribed antimicrobials were vancomycin and third- or fourth- generation cephalosporins.

Parenteral antimicrobial use was extensive, and as much as one-third was categorized as inappropriate. The findings of this study provide novel information toward minimizing inappropriate antimicrobial use.

To evaluate the concordance of case-finding methods for central line-associated infection as defined by Centers for Medicare and Medicaid Services (CMS) hospital-acquired condition (HAC) compared with traditional infection control (IC) methods.

One tertiary care and 2 community hospitals in North Carolina.

Adult and pediatric hospitalized patients determined to have central line infection by either case-finding method.

We performed a retrospective comparative analysis of infection detected using HAC versus standard IC central line–associated bloodstream infection surveillance from October 1, 2007, through December 31, 2009. One billing and 2 IC databases were queried and matched to determine the number and concordance of cases identified by each method. Manual review of 25 cases from each discordant category was performed. Sensitivity and positive predictive value (PPV) were calculated using IC as criterion standard.

A total of 1,505 cases were identified: 844 by International Classification of Diseases, Ninth Revision (ICD-9), and 798 by IC. A total of 204 cases (24%) identified by ICD-9 were deemed not present at hospital admission by coders. Only 112 cases (13%) were concordant. HAC sensitivity was 14% and PPV was 55% compared with IC. Concordance was low regardless of hospital type. Primary reasons for discordance included differences in surveillance and clinical definitions, clinical uncertainty, and poor documentation.

The case-finding method used by CMS HAC and the methods used for traditional IC surveillance frequently do not agree. This can lead to conflicting results when these 2 measures are used as hospital quality metrics.

Change from nonmolecular to molecular testing techniques is thought to contribute to the increasing trend in incidence of Clostridium difficile infection (CDI); however the degree of effect attributed to this versus other time-related epidemiologic factors is unclear.

We compared the relative change in incidence rate (IRR) of healthcare facility–associated (HCFA) CDI among hospitals in the Duke Infection Control Outreach Network before and after the date of switch from nonmolecular tests to polymerase chain reaction (PCR) using prospectively collected surveillance data from July 2009 to December 2011. Data from 10 hospitals that switched and 22 control hospitals were included. Individual hospital estimates were determined using Poisson regression. We used an interrupted time series approach to develop a Poisson mixed-effects model. Additional regression adjustments were made for clustering and proportion of intensive care unit patient-days. The variable for PCR was treated as a fixed effect; other modeled variables were random effects.

For those hospitals that switched to PCR, mean incidence rate of HCFA CDI before the switch was 6.0 CDIs per 10,000 patient-days compared with 9.6 CDIs per 10,000 patient-days after the switch. Estimates of hospital-specific IRR that compared after the switch with before the switch ranged from 0.89 (95% confidence interval [CI], 0.32–2.44) to 6.91 (95% CI, 1.12–42.54). After adjustment in the mixed-effects model, the overall IRR comparing CDI incidence after the switch to before the switch was 1.56 (95% CI, 1.28–1.90). Time-trend variables did not reach statistical significance.

Hospitals that switched from nonmolecular to molecular tests experienced an approximate 56% increase in the rate of HCFA CDI after testing change.

To analyze infectious complications that occur in patients who receive extracorporeal membrane oxygenation (ECMO), associated risk factors, and consequences on patient outcome.

Retrospective observational survey from 2005 through 2011.

Patients who required ECMO in an Australian referral center.

Cases of bloodstream infection (BSI), catheter-associated urinary tract infection (CAUTI), and ventilator-associated pneumonia (YAP) that occurred in patients who received ECMO were analyzed.

A total of 146 ECMO procedures were performed for more than 48 hours in 139 patients, and 36 patients had a total of 46 infections (30.1 infectious episodes per 1,000 days of ECMO). They included 24 cases of BSI, 6 of them secondary to VAP; 23 cases of VAP; and 5 cases of CAUTI. The most frequent pathogens were Enterobacteriaceae (found in 16 of 46 cases), and Candida was the most common cause of BSI (in 9 of 24 cases). The Sequential Organ Failure Assessment score before ECMO initiation and the number of days of support were independenuy associated with a risk of BSI, with odds ratios of 1.23 (95% confidence interval [CI], 1.03-1.47; P = .019) and 1.08(95% CI, 1.03-1.19]; P = .006), respectively. Infected patients did not have a significantly higher mortality compared with uninfected patients (41.7% vs 32%; P = .315), but intensive care unit length of stay (16 days [interquartile range, 8-26 days] vs 11 days [IQR, 4-19 days]; P = .012) and hospital length of stay (33.5 days [interquartile range, 15.5-55.5] vs 24 days [interquartile range, 9-42 days]; P = .029) were longer.

The probability of infection increased with the duration of support and the severity of illness before initiation of ECMO. Infections affected length of stay but did not have an impact on mortality.