Nosocomial Infections and Septicemia
NOSOCOMIAL INFECTIONS
Nosocomial Infection is an infection that occurs in a hospital of hospital-like setting. Approximately 10% of American hospital patients contract this infection.
There are three factors as to why nosocomial infection exists:
1. A high prevalence of pathogens.
2. A high prevalence of compromised hosts.
3. Efficient mechanisms of transmission from patient to patient.
These three factors alone lead not just to a higher chance of transmission of pathogens within hospitals, but potentially to an evolution of enhanced disease which causes potential among microorganisms present within the hospitals.
There are seven places that nosocomial infections are common in:
1. Urinary Tract.
2. Surgical Wounds.
3. Respiratory Tract.
4. Skin (especially burn areas).
5. Blood.
6. Gastrointestinal Tract.
7. Central Nervous System.
The organisms causing most nosocomial infections usually come from the patients own body. They also can come from contact with staff, contaminated instruments and needles, and the environment. Because patients are highly mobile and hospital stays are becoming shorter, patients often are discharged before the infection becomes apparent. Actually, a large number of nosocomial infections in hospital patients and most ambulatory care facilities become apparent only after the patients are discharged. As a result, it is often difficult to determine whether the source of the organism causing the infection is exogenous (produced outside the body). Rates of nosocomial infections are marked higher in many developing countries, especially for infections that are largely preventable ( those following surgical procedures such as cesarean section). In these countries nosocomial infection rates are high because a lack of supervision, poor infection prevention, inappropriate use of limited resources and overcrowding of hospitals.
Nosocomial
Nosocomial Infection is an infection that occurs in a hospital of hospital-like setting. Approximately 10% of American hospital patients contract this infection.
There are three factors as to why nosocomial infection exists:
1. A high prevalence of pathogens.
2. A high prevalence of compromised hosts.
3. Efficient mechanisms of transmission from patient to patient.
These three factors alone lead not just to a higher chance of transmission of pathogens within hospitals, but potentially to an evolution of enhanced disease which causes potential among microorganisms present within the hospitals.
There are seven places that nosocomial infections are common in:
1. Urinary Tract.
2. Surgical Wounds.
3. Respiratory Tract.
4. Skin (especially burn areas).
5. Blood.
6. Gastrointestinal Tract.
7. Central Nervous System.
The organisms causing most nosocomial infections usually come from the patients own body. They also can come from contact with staff, contaminated instruments and needles, and the environment. Because patients are highly mobile and hospital stays are becoming shorter, patients often are discharged before the infection becomes apparent. Actually, a large number of nosocomial infections in hospital patients and most ambulatory care facilities become apparent only after the patients are discharged. As a result, it is often difficult to determine whether the source of the organism causing the infection is exogenous (produced outside the body). Rates of nosocomial infections are marked higher in many developing countries, especially for infections that are largely preventable ( those following surgical procedures such as cesarean section). In these countries nosocomial infection rates are high because a lack of supervision, poor infection prevention, inappropriate use of limited resources and overcrowding of hospitals.
Nosocomial