RT Book, Section
A1 Weinstein, Robert A.
A2 Jameson, J. Larry
A2 Fauci, Anthony S.
A2 Kasper, Dennis L.
A2 Hauser, Stephen L.
A2 Longo, Dan L.
A2 Loscalzo, Joseph
SR Print(0)
ID 1155965658
T1 Infections Acquired in Health Care Facilities
T2 Harrison's Principles of Internal Medicine, 20e
YR 2018
FD 2018
PB McGraw-Hill Education
PP New York, NY
SN 9781259644016
LK accesspharmacy.mhmedical.com/content.aspx?aid=1155965658
RD 2024/04/19
AB Health  care–associated  infections  affect  as  many  as  1.7  million  patients  at  a  cost  of  ~$10–33  billion  and  up  to  99,000  lives  in  U.S.  hospitals  annually.  Although  efforts  to  lower  infection  risks  are  challenged  by  numbers  of  immunocompromised  patients,  antibiotic-resistant  bacteria,  and  fungal  and  viral  superinfections,  a  prevailing  viewpoint—”zero  tolerance”—is  that  health  care–associated  infections  are  avoidable  with  strict  application  of  evidence-based  prevention  guidelines  (Table  137-1).  In  fact,  rates  of  most  device-related  infections—historically,  the  largest  drivers  of  risk—have  fallen  steadily  over  the  past  few  years.  Unfortunately,  at  the  same  time,  antimicrobial-resistant  pathogens  have  risen  in  number  and  are  estimated  to  contribute  to  ~23,000  deaths  annually.  This  chapter  reviews  health  care–associated  and  device-related  infections  as  well  as  basic  surveillance,  prevention,  control,  and  treatment  activities.