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- Title
THE NATIONWIDE NOSOCOMIAL INFECTION RATE.
- Authors
HALEY, ROBERT W.; CULVER, DAVID H.; WHITE, JOHN W.; MORGAN, W. MEADE; EMORI, T. GRACE
- Abstract
From a random sample of patients and hospitals and extrapolation ratios derived from the best available sources of data, the authors estimate that the nationwide nosocomial infection rate among the 6,449 acute-care US hospitals in 1975ndash;1976 was 5.7 nosocomial infections per 100 admissions and that over 2 million nosocomial infections occurred in a 12-month period in these hospitals. Nosocomial urinary tract infections constituted 42% of the infections, surgical wound infections 24%, nosocomial pneumonia 10%, nosocomial bacteremia 5%, and nosocomial infections at all other sites 19%. If adjustments are made for the accuracy of the diagnostic method, the increasing nationwide secular trend, and the number of nosocomial infections in nursing homes, however, as many as 4 million nosocomial infections per year may now be occurring. This greatly exceeds previous estimates and calls for timely and accurate vital statistics on the problem.
- Publication
American Journal of Epidemiology, 1985, Vol 121, Issue 2, p159
- ISSN
0002-9262
- Publication type
Article
- DOI
10.1093/oxfordjournals.aje.a113988