Background: Although healthcare-associated infections (HAIs) pose an extraordinary burden on public health, the impact of coronavirus disease 2019 (COVID-19) is still a matter of debate. Aim: To describe trends of HAIs in Italian intensive care units (ICUs) from 2006 to 2021, and to compare characteristics and outcomes of patients with or without COVID-19. Methods: We evaluated patients participating in the ‘Italian Nosocomial Infections Surveillance in Intensive Care Units’ (SPIN-UTI) project, who were admitted to ICUs for more than 48 h. Data regarding diagnosis, clinical conditions, therapies, treatments and outcomes of COVID-19 patients were also collected. Findings: From a total of 21,523 patients from 2006 to 2021, 3485 (16.2%) presented at least one HAI. We observed an increasing trend for both the incidence of patients with HAI and the incidence density of HAIs (P-trend <0.001). Compared with the pre-pandemic period, the incidence density of HAIs increased by about 15% in 2020e2021, with pneumoniae being the greatest contributors to this increase (P-trend <0.001). Moreover, incidence of HAIs was higher in ICUs dedicated to COVID-19 patients (P<0.001), who showed a greater risk of HAIs and death than patients without COVID-19 (P-values <0.001). Accordingly, the mortality in ICUs increased over the years and doubled during the pandemic (P-trend <0.001). Notably, co-infected patients had higher mortality (75.2%) than those with COVID-19 (66.2%) or HAI (39.9%) alone, and those without any infection (23.2%). Conclusions: Our analysis provides useful insight into whether and how the COVID-19 pandemic influenced HAI incidence and death in Italian ICUs, highlighting the need for evaluation of the long-term effects of the pandemic

The intertwining of healthcare-associated infections and COVID-19 in Italian intensive care units: an analysis of the SPIN-UTI project from 2006 to 2021 / Barchitta, M; Maugeri, A; Favara, G; Magnano San Lio, R; C La Rosa, M; D'Ancona, F; Agodi, A; Network, SPIN-UTI; D'Errico, Mm; Donati, Abele; Domizi, Roberta. - In: JOURNAL OF HOSPITAL INFECTION. - ISSN 1532-2939. - ELETTRONICO. - 140:(2023), pp. 124-131. [10.1016/j.jhin.2023.07.021]

The intertwining of healthcare-associated infections and COVID-19 in Italian intensive care units: an analysis of the SPIN-UTI project from 2006 to 2021

MM D'Errico
Membro del Collaboration Group
;
Abele Donati
Membro del Collaboration Group
;
Roberta Domizi
Membro del Collaboration Group
2023-01-01

Abstract

Background: Although healthcare-associated infections (HAIs) pose an extraordinary burden on public health, the impact of coronavirus disease 2019 (COVID-19) is still a matter of debate. Aim: To describe trends of HAIs in Italian intensive care units (ICUs) from 2006 to 2021, and to compare characteristics and outcomes of patients with or without COVID-19. Methods: We evaluated patients participating in the ‘Italian Nosocomial Infections Surveillance in Intensive Care Units’ (SPIN-UTI) project, who were admitted to ICUs for more than 48 h. Data regarding diagnosis, clinical conditions, therapies, treatments and outcomes of COVID-19 patients were also collected. Findings: From a total of 21,523 patients from 2006 to 2021, 3485 (16.2%) presented at least one HAI. We observed an increasing trend for both the incidence of patients with HAI and the incidence density of HAIs (P-trend <0.001). Compared with the pre-pandemic period, the incidence density of HAIs increased by about 15% in 2020e2021, with pneumoniae being the greatest contributors to this increase (P-trend <0.001). Moreover, incidence of HAIs was higher in ICUs dedicated to COVID-19 patients (P<0.001), who showed a greater risk of HAIs and death than patients without COVID-19 (P-values <0.001). Accordingly, the mortality in ICUs increased over the years and doubled during the pandemic (P-trend <0.001). Notably, co-infected patients had higher mortality (75.2%) than those with COVID-19 (66.2%) or HAI (39.9%) alone, and those without any infection (23.2%). Conclusions: Our analysis provides useful insight into whether and how the COVID-19 pandemic influenced HAI incidence and death in Italian ICUs, highlighting the need for evaluation of the long-term effects of the pandemic
2023
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Utilizza questo identificativo per citare o creare un link a questo documento: https://hdl.handle.net/11566/327812
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