Intravascular Catheter Usage and the Rates of Catheter-Related Infections in Mersin University School of Medicine Hospital

More than half of the hospitalized patients are being treated via intravascular catheters. Infections relating to this treatment compose an important part of the nosocomial infections. In this study, we investigated the frequency of catheter applications, related complications, and infections. In a seven-month period between July 2001 and January 2002 catheter infections according to days of hospitalization were analyzed. In this period, the mean hospitalization time of 1908 patients was 12.9 days. Intravenous catheters were applied to 57.0% of patients. Peripheral, central venous and arterial catheters were applied with a frequency of 476, 74 and 55 per 1000 hospital-days, respectively. According to the results of an active surveillance study, nosocomial infection rate found to be 7.4%, and 23.3% of this ratio was constituted by catheter infections (catheter related infection rate was 1.7%). Complication rate of patients catheterized for 24.721 days were 28.9/1000, whereas catheter-related infection rate was 18 per 1000 catheter-days. In a total of 70 samples from 38 patients (blood and catheter specimen), no causative organisms were isolated in 34.3%, whereas gram-positive cocci, gram-negative bacilli, and Candida spp. were isolated in 45.1%, 20.5%, and 9.6%, respectively. Rates per 100 patient and targeted surveillance results were found for catheter-related infection to be comparable