Device-Associated Infections in Adult Intensive Care Units: A Prospective Surveillance Study

Device-associated infections (DAIs) are a significant public health concern because of their attributable mortality, along with extra length of stay and cost. This two- year prospective, surveillance study aimed to assess the incidence of DAIs and their clinical impact on 4 Greek adult medical-surgical ICUs. Centers for Disease Control and Prevention (CDC) definitions were used to diagnose DAIs. Of the 500 patients hospitalized for 12,624 days, 254 (50.8%) experienced 346 episodes of DAIs. The incidence of DAIs was 27.4/1,000 bed-days. The incidence of ventilator-associated events (VAEs), central line-associated bloodstream infections (CLABSIs), and catheter-associated urinary tract infections (CAUTIs) was 20.5/1,000 ventilator-days, 8.6/1,000 central-line days and 2.5/1,000 catheter-days, respectively. The most common pathogen isolated was Acinetobacter baumannii (35.7%%) and Klebsiella pneumoniae (29.9%). All gram-negative pathogens were carbapenem-resistant. DAIs attributable mortality was 20.1% (p = 0.000), while attributable length of stay was 18.9 days (p = 0.000), respectively. The high incidence and attributable length of stay and mortality of DAIs emphasize the need to establish an organized infection surveillance program and implement a care bundle for DAIs prevention in ICUs.