Scholars@Duke
Sarah Stamps Lewis

Sarah Stamps Lewis

Associate Professor of Medicine
Medicine, Infectious Diseases
sarah.stamps@duke.edu
Dept of Medicine, BOX_31186 Med Ctr, Durham, NC 27710

Selected Publications

A cluster of three extrapulmonary Mycobacterium abscessus infections linked to well-maintained water-based heater-cooler devices.

Journal Article Infect Control Hosp Epidemiol · May 2024 BACKGROUND: Various water-based heater-cooler devices (HCDs) have been implicated in nontuberculous mycobacteria outbreaks. Ongoing rigorous surveillance for healthcare-associated M. abscessus (HA-Mab) put in place following a prior institutional outbreak ... Full text Link to item Cite

Implementation of a diagnostic stewardship intervention to improve blood-culture utilization in 2 surgical ICUs: Time for a blood-culture change.

Journal Article Infect Control Hosp Epidemiol · April 2024 OBJECTIVE: We compared the number of blood-culture events before and after the introduction of a blood-culture algorithm and provider feedback. Secondary objectives were the comparison of blood-culture positivity and negative safety signals before and afte ... Full text Link to item Cite

Comparative epidemiology of hospital-onset bloodstream infections (HOBSIs) and central line-associated bloodstream infections (CLABSIs) across a three-hospital health system.

Journal Article Infect Control Hosp Epidemiol · March 20, 2024 OBJECTIVE: To evaluate the comparative epidemiology of hospital-onset bloodstream infection (HOBSI) and central line-associated bloodstream infection (CLABSI). DESIGN AND SETTING: Retrospective observational study of HOBSI and CLABSI across a three-hospita ... Full text Link to item Cite

Identification of carbapenem-resistant organism (CRO) contamination of in-room sinks in intensive care units in a new hospital bed tower.

Journal Article Infect Control Hosp Epidemiol · March 2024 BACKGROUND: The origins and timing of inpatient room sink contamination with carbapenem-resistant organisms (CROs) are poorly understood. METHODS: We performed a prospective observational study to describe the timing, rate, and frequency of CRO contaminati ... Full text Link to item Cite

Healthcare Provider N95 Respirator Contamination Worn Behind Face Shields With SARS-CoV-2 During Routine Clinical Care of Patients With COVID-19.

Journal Article Open Forum Infect Dis · March 2024 N95 respirator contamination with severe acute respiratory syndrome coronavirus 2 (SARS-CoV-2) during clinical care of patients with coronavirus disease 2019 is poorly understood. We performed a prospective observational study on healthcare provider's (HCP ... Full text Link to item Cite

Disparities in central line-associated bloodstream infection and catheter-associated urinary tract infection rates: An exploratory analysis.

Journal Article Infect Control Hosp Epidemiol · November 2023 This retrospective review of 4-year surveillance data revealed a higher central line-associated bloodstream infection (CLABSI) rate in non-Hispanic Black patients and higher catheter-associated urinary tract infection (CAUTI) rates in Asian and non-Hispani ... Full text Link to item Cite

Using clinical decision support to improve urine testing and antibiotic utilization.

Journal Article Infect Control Hosp Epidemiol · October 2023 OBJECTIVE: Urine cultures collected from catheterized patients have a high likelihood of false-positive results due to colonization. We examined the impact of a clinical decision support (CDS) tool that includes catheter information on test utilization and ... Full text Open Access Link to item Cite

Colon surgical-site infections and the impact of "present at the time of surgery (PATOS)" in a large network of community hospitals.

Journal Article Infect Control Hosp Epidemiol · August 2023 OBJECTIVES: To describe the epidemiology of complex colon surgical procedures (COLO), stratified by present at time of surgery (PATOS) surgical-site infections (SSIs) and non-PATOS SSIs and their impact on the epidemiology of colon-surgery SSIs. DESIGN: Re ... Full text Link to item Cite

Disinfection efficacy of Oxivir TB wipe residue on severe acute respiratory coronavirus virus 2 (SARS-CoV-2).

Journal Article Infect Control Hosp Epidemiol · July 19, 2023 We assessed Oxivir Tb wipe disinfectant residue in a controlled laboratory setting to evaluate low environmental contamination of SARS-CoV-2. Frequency of viral RNA detection was not statistically different between intervention and control arms on day 3 (P ... Full text Link to item Cite

The impact of a comprehensive coronavirus disease 2019 (COVID-19) infection prevention bundle on non-COVID-19 hospital-acquired respiratory viral infection (HA-RVI) rates.

Journal Article Infect Control Hosp Epidemiol · June 2023 After implementing a coronavirus disease 2019 (COVID-19) infection prevention bundle, the incidence rate ratio (IRR) of non-severe acute respiratory coronavirus virus 2 (non-SARS-CoV-2) hospital-acquired respiratory viral infection (HA-RVI) was significant ... Full text Link to item Cite

Use of Statistical Process Control Methods for Early Detection of Healthcare Facility-Associated Nontuberculous Mycobacteria Outbreaks: A Single-Center Pilot Study.

Journal Article Clin Infect Dis · April 17, 2023 BACKGROUND: Nontuberculous mycobacteria (NTM) are emerging pathogens increasingly implicated in healthcare facility-associated (HCFA) infections and outbreaks. We analyzed the performance of statistical process control (SPC) methods in detecting HCFA NTM o ... Full text Link to item Cite

Surgical site infection trends in community hospitals from 2013 to 2018.

Journal Article Infect Control Hosp Epidemiol · April 2023 OBJECTIVE: Sparse recent data are available on the epidemiology of surgical site infections (SSIs) in community hospitals. Our objective was to provide updated epidemiology data on complex SSIs in community hospitals and to characterize trends of SSI preva ... Full text Link to item Cite

Challenges in the Hospital Water System and Innovations to Prevent Healthcare-Associated Infections

Journal Article Current Treatment Options in Infectious Diseases · February 15, 2023 Full text Cite

Challenges in hospital-acquired coronavirus disease 2019 (COVID-19) surveillance and attribution of infection source.

Journal Article Infect Control Hosp Epidemiol · December 2022 We performed surveillance for hospital-acquired COVID-19 (HA-COVID-19) and compared time-based, electronic definitions to real-time adjudication of the most likely source of acquisition. Without real-time adjudication, nearly 50% of HA-COVID-19 cases ident ... Full text Link to item Cite

Epidemiology of surgical site infections after solid organ transplants in the period 2015-2019: A single-center retrospective cohort study.

Journal Article Am J Transplant · December 2022 Surgical site infections (SSI) are severe complications of solid organ transplant (SOT). This retrospective study assessed the epidemiology of and outcomes associated with invasive primary SSI (IP-SSI) occurring within 3 months of transplantation in adult ... Full text Open Access Link to item Cite

Early recognition and response to increases in surgical site infections using optimised statistical process control charts-The early 2RIS trial: A multicentre stepped wedge cluster randomised controlled trial.

Journal Article EClinicalMedicine · December 2022 BACKGROUND: Traditional approaches for surgical site infection (SSI) surveillance have deficiencies that delay detection of SSI outbreaks and other clinically important increases in SSI rates. We investigated whether use of optimised statistical process co ... Full text Open Access Link to item Cite

Comparison of metrics used to track central-line-associated bloodstream infections (CLABSIs) and catheter-associated urinary tract infections (CAUTIs) across a regional network.

Journal Article Infect Control Hosp Epidemiol · November 2022 The paradoxical relationship between standardized infection ratio and standardized utilization ratio for catheter-associated urinary tract infections (CAUTIs) in contrast to central-line-associated bloodstream infections (CLABSIs), in addition to CAUTI def ... Full text Link to item Cite

Severe acute respiratory syndrome coronavirus 2 environmental contamination in hospital rooms is uncommon using viral culture techniques.

Journal Article Clin Infect Dis · August 24, 2022 We assessed environmental contamination of inpatient rooms housing coronavirus disease 2019 (COVID-19) patients in a dedicated COVID-19 unit. Contamination with severe acute respiratory syndrome coronavirus 2 was found on 5.5% (19/347) of surfaces via reve ... Full text Link to item Cite

Sustained reduction in catheter-associated urinary tract infections using multi-faceted strategies led by champions: A quality improvement initiative.

Journal Article Infect Control Hosp Epidemiol · July 2022 We reviewed the sustainability of a multifaceted intervention on catheter-associated urinary tract infection (CAUTI) in 3 intensive care units. During the 4-year postintervention period, we observed reductions in urine culture rates (from 80.9 to 47.5 per ... Full text Open Access Link to item Cite

In pursuit of the holy grail: Improving C. difficile testing appropriateness with iterative electronic health record clinical decision support and targeted test restriction.

Journal Article Infect Control Hosp Epidemiol · July 2022 OBJECTIVE: To determine the impact of electronic health record (EHR)-based interventions and test restriction on Clostridioides difficile tests (CDTs) and hospital-onset C. difficile infection (HO-CDI). DESIGN: Quasi-experimental study in 3 hospitals. SETT ... Full text Link to item Cite

The impact of patient-reported penicillin or cephalosporin allergy on surgical site infections.

Journal Article Infect Control Hosp Epidemiol · July 2022 OBJECTIVE: To determine the impact of a documented penicillin or cephalosporin allergy on the development of surgical site infections (SSIs). BACKGROUND: Appropriate preoperative antibiotic prophylaxis reduces SSI risk, but documented antibiotic allergies ... Full text Link to item Cite

Enhancement of infection prevention case review process to optimize learning from defects.

Journal Article J Infect Prev · May 2022 Hospitals continue to struggle with preventable healthcare-associated infections. Whereas the focus is generally on proactive prevention processes, performing retrospective case reviews of infections can identify opportunities for quality improvement and m ... Full text Open Access Link to item Cite

Burden of healthcare-associated infections among hospitalized children within community hospitals participating in an infection control network.

Journal Article Infect Control Hosp Epidemiol · April 2022 We describe the frequency of pediatric healthcare-associated infections (HAIs) identified through prospective surveillance in community hospitals participating in an infection control network. Over a 6-year period, 84 HAIs were identified. Of these 51 (61% ... Full text Link to item Cite

The Impact of Infection Versus Colonization on Clostridioides difficile Environmental Contamination in Hospitalized Patients With Diarrhea.

Journal Article Open Forum Infect Dis · April 2022 BACKGROUND: Patients with Clostridioides difficile infections (CDIs) contaminate the healthcare environment; however, the relative contribution of contamination by colonized individuals is unknown. Current guidelines do not recommend the use of contact pre ... Full text Link to item Cite

Genomic Analysis of a Hospital-Associated Outbreak of Mycobacterium abscessus: Implications on Transmission.

Journal Article J Clin Microbiol · January 19, 2022 Whole-genome sequencing (WGS) has recently been used to investigate acquisition of Mycobacterium abscessus. Investigators have reached conflicting conclusions about the meaning of genetic distances for interpretation of person-to-person transmission. Exist ... Full text Link to item Cite

Tap Water Avoidance Decreases Rates of Hospital-onset Pulmonary Nontuberculous Mycobacteria.

Journal Article Clin Infect Dis · August 2, 2021 We analyzed the impact of a hospital tap water avoidance protocol on respiratory isolation of nontuberculous mycobacteria (NTM). After protocol implementation, hospital-onset episodes of respiratory NTM isolation on high-risk units decreased from 41.0 to 9 ... Full text Link to item Cite

Multi-faceted strategies improve collection compliance and sample acceptance rate for carbapenem-resistant Enterobacteriaceae (CRE) active surveillance testing.

Journal Article Am J Infect Control · August 2021 BACKGROUND: Active surveillance testing (AST) is one element of a comprehensive Carbapenem-resistant Enterobacteriaceae (CRE) prevention strategy. However, the utility of AST may be impacted by compliance with sample collection and the quality of specimens ... Full text Open Access Link to item Cite

Pseudo-outbreak of adenovirus in bronchoscopy suite.

Journal Article Infect Control Hosp Epidemiol · August 2021 Full text Link to item Cite

Invasive Mycobacterium abscessus Complex Infection After Cardiac Surgery: Epidemiology, Management, and Clinical Outcomes.

Journal Article Clin Infect Dis · April 8, 2021 BACKGROUND: We recently mitigated a clonal outbreak of hospital-acquired Mycobacterium abscessus complex (MABC), which included a large cluster of adult patients who developed invasive infection after exposure to heater-cooler units during cardiac surgery. ... Full text Link to item Cite

Early experience with universal preprocedural testing for SARS-CoV-2 in a relatively low-prevalence area.

Journal Article Infect Control Hosp Epidemiol · March 2021 We implemented universal severe acute respiratory syndrome coronavirus 2 (SARS-CoV-2) testing of patients undergoing surgical procedures as a means to conserve personal protective equipment (PPE). The rate of asymptomatic coronavirus disease 2019 (COVID-19 ... Full text Open Access Link to item Cite

Navigating reflex urine culture practices in community hospitals: Need for a validated approach.

Journal Article Am J Infect Control · December 2020 We performed a descriptive study of reflex urine culture (RUC) practices across 51 community hospitals in southeastern United States. We found that 26 unique reflexing criteria were used in 28 hospitals. Only 14% hospitals of hospitals that offered RUC res ... Full text Link to item Cite

Reduction of Central-Line–Associated Bloodstream Infections in a Spinal Cord Injury Unit

Conference Infection Control & Hospital Epidemiology · October 2020 Background: Central-line–associated bloodstream infections (CLABSIs) are a complication of indwelling central venous catheters, which increase morbidity, mortality, and cost to patients. Objective: Due ... Full text Cite

Catheter-Associated Urinary Tract Infections (CAUTIs) Reduction: A Multidisciplinary Approach

Conference INFECTION CONTROL AND HOSPITAL EPIDEMIOLOGY · October 2020 Link to item Cite

Comparison of Metrics Used to Track CLABSIs and CAUTIs Across a Regional Network

Conference Infection Control & Hospital Epidemiology · October 2020 Background: The standardized infection ratio (SIR) is the nationally adopted metric used to track and compare catheter-associated urinary tract infections (CAUTIs) and central-line– associated bloodstream infections (CLABSIs) ... Full text Cite

CAUTIs in Patients With Thoracic Epidurals

Conference Infection Control & Hospital Epidemiology · October 2020 Background: The Surgical Care Improvement Project 9 (SCIP 9) mandates the removal of urinary catheters within 48 hours following surgery to reduce the risk of catheter-associated urinary tract infections (CAUTIs). Although pa ... Full text Cite

Enhanced Bundled Interventions to Reduce Surgical Site Infections for Patients with Congenital Cardiac Disease

Conference Infection Control & Hospital Epidemiology · October 2020 Background: Surgical site infections (SSIs) among cardiothoracic (CT) patients are associated with high rates of morbidity and mortality. Data are limited regarding SSI incidence among pediatric patients undergoing primary re ... Full text Cite

Universal masking in hospitals in the COVID-19 era: Is it time to consider shielding?

Journal Article Infect Control Hosp Epidemiol · September 2020 With concerns for presymptomatic transmission of COVID-19 and increasing burden of contact tracing and employee furloughs, several hospitals have supplemented pre-existing infection prevention measures with universal masking of all personnel in hospitals. ... Full text Link to item Cite

Reflex Urine Culture Practices in a Regional Community Hospital Network

Conference Infection Control & Hospital Epidemiology · 2020 Background: Reflex urine cultures (RUCs) have the potential to reduce unnecessary urine cultures and antibiotic use. However, urinalysis parameters that best predict true infection are unknown. In this study, we surveyed different RUC practices in laborato ... Full text Link to item Cite

Epidemiology of Posttransrectal Prostate Biopsy Bloodstream Infections and Impact of a Screening Program

Conference Infection Control & Hospital Epidemiology · 2020 Background: Antibiotic prophylaxis choice for transrectal prostate biopsy (TRPB) has been affected by the emergence of fluoroquinolone-resistant Escherichia coli (FQRE). Prebiopsy FQRE screening and targeted antibiotic prophylaxis may reduce post-TRPB bloo ... Full text Link to item Cite

Epidemiologic Trends in Clostridioides difficile Infections in a Regional Community Hospital Network.

Journal Article JAMA Netw Open · October 2, 2019 IMPORTANCE: Clostridioides difficile infection (CDI) remains a leading cause of health care facility-associated infection. A greater understanding of the regional epidemiologic profile of CDI could inform targeted prevention strategies. OBJECTIVES: To asse ... Full text Open Access Link to item Cite

Mycobacterium avium pseudo-outbreak associated with an outpatient bronchoscopy clinic: Lessons for reprocessing.

Journal Article Infect Control Hosp Epidemiol · January 2019 We identified a pseudo-outbreak of Mycobacterium avium in an outpatient bronchoscopy clinic following an increase in clinic procedure volume. We terminated the pseudo-outbreak by increasing the frequency of automated endoscope reprocessors (AER) filter cha ... Full text Open Access Link to item Cite

Neurosurgical Device-Related Infections.

Journal Article Infect Dis Clin North Am · December 2018 In this review article, we discuss the epidemiology, microbiology, diagnosis, treatment and prevention of infections associated with cerebrospinal fluid shunts, cerebrospinal fluid drains, and deep brain stimulators. We also briefly discuss prevention stra ... Full text Link to item Cite

Effectiveness of targeted enhanced terminal room disinfection on hospital-wide acquisition and infection with multidrug-resistant organisms and Clostridium difficile: a secondary analysis of a multicentre cluster randomised controlled trial with crossover design (BETR Disinfection).

Journal Article Lancet Infect Dis · August 2018 BACKGROUND: The hospital environment is a source of pathogen transmission. The effect of enhanced disinfection strategies on the hospital-wide incidence of infection has not been investigated in a multicentre, randomised controlled trial. We aimed to asses ... Full text Link to item Cite

Adenovirus Type 21 Outbreak Among Lung Transplant Patients at a Large Tertiary Care Hospital.

Journal Article Open Forum Infect Dis · August 2018 Here we summarize an April 2016, 7-patient cluster of human adenovirus (HAdV) infections in a cardiothoracic surgery intensive care unit. We show that the patients were infected with a single HAdV21b type. Rapid HAdV typing diagnostics and effective antivi ... Full text Link to item Cite

Feasibility and Value of Developing a Regional Antibiogram for Community Hospitals.

Journal Article Infect Control Hosp Epidemiol · June 2018 OBJECTIVETo determine the feasibility and value of developing a regional antibiogram for community hospitals.DESIGNMulticenter retrospective analysis of antibiograms.SETTING AND PARTICIPANTSA total of 20 community hospitals in central and eastern North Car ... Full text Link to item Cite

Denominator Matters in Estimating Antimicrobial Use: A Comparison of Days Present and Patient Days.

Journal Article Infect Control Hosp Epidemiol · May 2018 Patient days and days present were compared to directly measured person time to quantify how choice of different denominator metrics may affect antimicrobial use rates. Overall, days present were approximately one-third higher than patient days. This diffe ... Full text Link to item Cite

Implementation Lessons Learned From the Benefits of Enhanced Terminal Room (BETR) Disinfection Study: Process and Perceptions of Enhanced Disinfection with Ultraviolet Disinfection Devices.

Journal Article Infect Control Hosp Epidemiol · February 2018 OBJECTIVE To summarize and discuss logistic and administrative challenges we encountered during the Benefits of Enhanced Terminal Room (BETR) Disinfection Study and lessons learned that are pertinent to future utilization of ultraviolet (UV) disinfection d ... Full text Link to item Cite

The Antimicrobial Scrub Contamination and Transmission (ASCOT) Trial: A Three-Arm, Blinded, Randomized Controlled Trial With Crossover Design to Determine the Efficacy of Antimicrobial-Impregnated Scrubs in Preventing Healthcare Provider Contamination.

Journal Article Infect Control Hosp Epidemiol · October 2017 OBJECTIVE To determine whether antimicrobial-impregnated textiles decrease the acquisition of pathogens by healthcare provider (HCP) clothing. DESIGN We completed a 3-arm randomized controlled trial to test the efficacy of 2 types of antimicrobial-impregna ... Full text Link to item Cite

Two-Phase Hospital-Associated Outbreak of Mycobacterium abscessus: Investigation and Mitigation.

Journal Article Clin Infect Dis · April 1, 2017 BACKGROUND: Nontuberculous mycobacteria (NTM) commonly colonize municipal water supplies and cause healthcare-associated outbreaks. We investigated a biphasic outbreak of Mycobacterium abscessus at a tertiary care hospital. METHODS: Case patients had recen ... Full text Link to item Cite

Enhanced terminal room disinfection and acquisition and infection caused by multidrug-resistant organisms and Clostridium difficile (the Benefits of Enhanced Terminal Room Disinfection study): a cluster-randomised, multicentre, crossover study.

Journal Article Lancet · February 25, 2017 BACKGROUND: Patients admitted to hospital can acquire multidrug-resistant organisms and Clostridium difficile from inadequately disinfected environmental surfaces. We determined the effect of three enhanced strategies for terminal room disinfection (disinf ... Full text Link to item Cite

Clinical Outcomes and Healthcare Utilization Related to Multidrug-Resistant Gram-Negative Infections in Community Hospitals.

Journal Article Infect Control Hosp Epidemiol · January 2017 OBJECTIVE To evaluate the impact of multidrug-resistant gram-negative rod (MDR-GNR) infections on mortality and healthcare resource utilization in community hospitals. DESIGN Two matched case-control analyses. SETTING Six community hospitals participating ... Full text Link to item Cite

Identification of novel risk factors for community-acquired Clostridium difficile infection using spatial statistics and geographic information system analyses.

Journal Article PLoS One · 2017 BACKGROUND: The rate of community-acquired Clostridium difficile infection (CA-CDI) is increasing. While receipt of antibiotics remains an important risk factor for CDI, studies related to acquisition of C. difficile outside of hospitals are lacking. As a ... Full text Open Access Link to item Cite

A Multicenter Pragmatic Interrupted Time Series Analysis of Chlorhexidine Gluconate Bathing in Community Hospital Intensive Care Units.

Journal Article Infect Control Hosp Epidemiol · July 2016 OBJECTIVE To determine whether daily chlorhexidine gluconate (CHG) bathing of intensive care unit (ICU) patients leads to a decrease in hospital-acquired infections (HAIs), particularly infections caused by methicillin-resistant Staphylococcus aureus (MRSA ... Full text Link to item Cite

Epidemiology of Surgical Site Infection in a Community Hospital Network.

Journal Article Infect Control Hosp Epidemiol · May 2016 OBJECTIVE: To describe the epidemiology of complex surgical site infection (SSI) following commonly performed surgical procedures in community hospitals and to characterize trends of SSI prevalence rates over time for MRSA and other common pathogens METHOD ... Full text Link to item Cite

An Automated Surveillance Strategy to Identify Infectious Complications After Cardiac Implantable Electronic Device Procedures.

Journal Article Open Forum Infect Dis · December 2015 Background.  The optimum approach for infectious complication surveillance for cardiac implantable electronic device (CIED) procedures is unclear. We created an automated surveillance tool for infectious complications after CIED procedures. Methods.  Adult ... Full text Open Access Link to item Cite

Short Operative Duration and Surgical Site Infection Risk in Hip and Knee Arthroplasty Procedures.

Journal Article Infect Control Hosp Epidemiol · December 2015 OBJECTIVE: To determine the association (1) between shorter operative duration and surgical site infection (SSI) and (2) between surgeon median operative duration and SSI risk among first-time hip and knee arthroplasties. DESIGN: Retrospective cohort study ... Full text Link to item Cite

Seasonal Variation of Common Surgical Site Infections: Does Season Matter?

Journal Article Infect Control Hosp Epidemiol · September 2015 OBJECTIVE: To evaluate seasonal variation in the rate of surgical site infections (SSI) following commonly performed surgical procedures. DESIGN: Retrospective cohort study. METHODS: We analyzed 6 years (January 1, 2007, through December 31, 2012) of data ... Full text Link to item Cite

Postoperative infection in spine surgery: does the month matter?

Journal Article J Neurosurg Spine · July 2015 OBJECT: The relationship between time of year and surgical site infection (SSI) following neurosurgical procedures is poorly understood. Authors of previous reports have demonstrated that rates of SSI following neurosurgical procedures performed during the ... Full text Link to item Cite

Delay in diagnosis of invasive surgical site infections following knee arthroplasty versus hip arthroplasty.

Journal Article Clin Infect Dis · April 1, 2015 BACKGROUND: The timing of diagnosis of invasive surgical site infection (SSI) following joint replacement surgery is an important criterion used to determine subsequent medical and surgical management. METHODS: We compared time to diagnosis of invasive SSI ... Full text Link to item Cite

The potential impact of excluding funguria from the surveillance definition of catheter-associated urinary tract infection.

Journal Article Infect Control Hosp Epidemiol · April 2015 Funguria rarely represents true infection in the urinary tract. Excluding yeast from the catheter-associated urinary tract infection (CAUTI) surveillance definition reduced CAUTI rates by nearly 25% in community hospitals and at an academic, tertiary-care ... Full text Link to item Cite

A comparison between National Healthcare Safety Network laboratory-identified event reporting versus traditional surveillance for Clostridium difficile infection.

Journal Article Infect Control Hosp Epidemiol · February 2015 OBJECTIVE Hospitals in the National Healthcare Safety Network began reporting laboratory-identified (LabID) Clostridium difficile infection (CDI) events in January 2013. Our study quantified the differences between the LabID and traditional surveillance me ... Full text Link to item Cite

Epidemiology of methicillin-resistant Staphylococcus aureus pneumonia in community hospitals.

Journal Article Infect Control Hosp Epidemiol · December 2014 OBJECTIVE: Describe the epidemiology of healthcare-related (ie, healthcare-associated and hospital-acquired) pneumonia due to methicillin-resistant Staphylococcus aureus (MRSA) among hospitalized patients in community hospitals. DESIGN: Retrospective cohor ... Full text Link to item Cite

Methicillin-resistant Staphylococcus aureus bloodstream infection surveillance: National Healthcare Safety Network's laboratory-identified event reporting versus traditional laboratory-confirmed bloodstream infection surveillance.

Journal Article Infect Control Hosp Epidemiol · October 2014 Hospitals must report cases of methicillin-resistant Staphylococcus aureus bloodstream infection (BSI) using a new laboratory-identified (LabID) event reporting module. BSI rates obtained using LabID differ from rates of BSI obtained from traditional surve ... Full text Link to item Cite

Clinical utility of indium 111-labeled white blood cell scintigraphy for evaluation of suspected infection.

Journal Article Open Forum Infect Dis · September 2014 BACKGROUND: We sought to characterize the clinical utility of indium 111 ((111)In)-labeled white blood cell (WBC) scans by indication, to identify patient populations who might benefit most from this imaging modality. METHODS: Medical records for all patie ... Full text Open Access Link to item Cite

Rising rates of carbapenem-resistant enterobacteriaceae in community hospitals: a mixed-methods review of epidemiology and microbiology practices in a network of community hospitals in the southeastern United States.

Journal Article Infect Control Hosp Epidemiol · August 2014 OBJECTIVE: Describe the epidemiology of carbapenem-resistant Enterobacteriaceae (CRE) and examine the effect of lower carbapenem breakpoints on CRE detection. DESIGN: Retrospective cohort. SETTING: Inpatient care at community hospitals. PATIENTS: All patie ... Full text Link to item Cite

Surveying the surveillance: surgical site infections excluded by the January 2013 updated surveillance definitions.

Journal Article Infect Control Hosp Epidemiol · May 2014 The updated 2013 Centers for Disease Control and Prevention/National Healthcare Safety Network definitions for surgical site infections (SSIs) reduced the duration of prolonged surveillance from 1 year to 90 days and defined which procedure types require p ... Full text Link to item Cite

Outbreak of bacteremia due to Burkholderia contaminans linked to intravenous fentanyl from an institutional compounding pharmacy.

Journal Article JAMA Intern Med · April 2014 IMPORTANCE Many health care facilities compound medications on site to fulfill local demands when customized formulations are needed, national supply is critically low, or costs for manufactured pharmaceuticals are excessive. Small, institutional compoundi ... Full text Link to item Cite

Comparison of non-intensive care unit (ICU) versus ICU rates of catheter-associated urinary tract infection in community hospitals.

Journal Article Infect Control Hosp Epidemiol · July 2013 We describe and compare the epidemiology of catheter-associated urinary tract infection (CAUTI) occurring in non-intensive care unit (ICU) versus ICU wards in a network of community hospitals over a 2-year period. Overall, 72% of cases of CAUTI occurred in ... Full text Link to item Cite

Treatment of Clostridium difficile infection: recent trial results.

Journal Article Clin Investig (Lond) · 2013 Clostridium difficile is a major cause of infection worldwide and is associated with increasing morbidity and mortality in vulnerable patient populations. Metronidazole and oral vancomycin are the currently recommended therapies for the treatment of C. dif ... Full text Link to item Cite

Metastatic complications of bloodstream infections in hemodialysis patients.

Journal Article Semin Dial · 2013 Bacteremia is a common infectious complication in hemodialysis patients. Metastatic sites of infection including infective endocarditis, vertebral osteomyelitis, spinal epidural abscess, and septic arthritis occur relatively frequently. These complications ... Full text Link to item Cite