Healthcareassociated infection and risk factors in premature infants

Abstract:

ObjectiveTo investigate healthcareassociated infection(HAI) and related risk factors in premature infants.MethodsMedical records of 476 premature infants who were hospitalized in a neonatal intensive care unit(NICU) from January 2009 to December 2010 were surveyed retrospectively.ResultsOf 476 premature infants,73 developed 79 episodes of HAI(15.34%),case infection rate was 16.60%; Respiratory tract was the major infection site(65.82%), followed by skin soft tissue (12.66%) and gastrointestinal tract (7.60%); 53.95% of pathogens were gramnegative bacteria, the major pathogens were Klebsiella pneumonia, Escherichia coli and Pseudomonas aeruginosa;38.16% of pathogens were grampositive bacteria,the main pathogens were Staphylococcus epidermidis,Streptococcus pneumonia and Staphylococcus aureus;7.89% of all pathogens were fungi,the main fungi was Candida albicans. HAI rate was high in premature infants with low birth weight, invasive operation, long length of stay in ICU, long time use of antimicrobial agents, and use of glucocorticoid(P<0.01).ConclusionHAI rate is high in premature infants, the major infection site is respiratory tract, the major pathogen is gramnegative bacteria, the related risk factors for HAI are low birth weight, invasive operation, long hospitalization time, long time use of antimicrobial agents and use of glucocorticoid.