Jpn. J. Infect. Dis., 58 (5), 297-302, 2005
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Original Article
Intensive Care Unit-Acquired Infections: Incidence, Risk Factors and Associated Mortality in a Turkish University Hospital
Meliha Meric*, Ayse Willke, Cigdem Caglayan1 and Kamil Toker2
Department of Clinical Microbiology and Infectious Diseases, 1Department of Public Health and 2Department of Anaesthesiology and Intensive Care, Kocaeli University Faculty of Medicine, Kocaeli, Turkey
(Received October 5, 2004. Accepted August 17, 2005)
*Corresponding author: Mailing address: Kocaeli Universitesi Tip Fakultesi Hastanesi, Infeksiyon Hastaliklari AD, 41380 Umuttepe, Izmit, Turkey. E-mail: mel_meric@yahoo.com
SUMMARY: In this prospective study, 93 intensive care unit (ICU)-acquired infections seen in 131 ICU patients were evaluated. Infection rates were found to be 70.9 in 100 patients and 56.2 in 1,000 patient-days. Pneumonia (35.4%) and bloodstream infections (18.2%) were the most common infections; Staphylococcus aureus (30.9%) and Acinetobacter spp. (26.8%) were the most frequently isolated microorganisms. The results of multivariate logistic regression analyses estimating the risk factors for ICU-acquired infections were as follows: length of stay in ICU (>7 days) (odds ratio [OR]: 7.02; 95% confidence interval [CI]: 2.80-17.56), respiratory failure as a primary cause of admission (OR: 3.7; 95% Cl: 1.41-9.70), sedative medication (OR: 3.34; 95% CI: 1.27-8.79) and operation (before or after admission to ICU) (OR: 2.56; 95% CI: 1.06-6.18). In logistic regression analyses, age (>60 years) (OR: 3.65; 95% CI: 1.48-9.0), APACHE II score >15 (OR: 4.67; 95% CI: 1.92-11.31), intubation (OR: 3.60; 95% CI: 1.05-12.39) and central venous catheterization (OR: 7.85; 95% CI: 1.61-38.32) were found to be significant risk factors for mortality. The difference in mortality rates between patients with ICU-acquired infection and uninfected patients was not statistically significant (mortality rates: 42.3 and 45.6%, respectively). A high incidence of nosocomial infections was found, and the risk factors for ICU-acquired infections and mortality were determined.