Abstract
Indwelling catheters are strongly associated with the development of bacteriuria,
which can lead to significant morbidity in hospitalized patients. This report, a review
of the literature, evaluates the infectious outcomes of patients with indwelling catheters
to determine the precise clinical and economic impact of catheter-related infection.
Statistical pooling was used to estimate the incidence of bacteriuria in hospitalized
patients with indwelling catheters. In addition, the proportion of patients with catheter-related
bacteriuria in whom symptomatic urinary tract infection and bacteremia will develop
was estimated through quantitative synthesis of previous reports. Costs were estimated
by using microcosting techniques.
Of patients who have indwelling catheters for 2 to 10 days, bacteriuria is expected
to develop in 26% (95% confidence interval [CI], 23% to 29%). Among patients with
bacteriuria symptoms of urinary tract infection will develop in 24%, (95% CI, 16%
to 32%), and bacteremia from a urinary tract source will develop in 3.6% (95% CI,
3.4% to 3.8%). Each episode of symptomatic urinary tract infection is expected to
cost an additional $676, and catheter-related bacteremia is likely to cost at least
$2836. Given the clinical and economic burden of urinary catheter-related infection,
infection control professionals and hospital epidemiologists should use the latest
infection control principles and technology to reduce this common complication. (AJIC
Am J Infect Control 2000;28:68-75.)
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Article info
Footnotes
*Supported in part by a grant from the Association for Professionals in Infection Control and Epidemiology, Inc (APIC), Research Foundation. Dr. Saint was a Robert Wood Johnson Clinical Scholar at the time much of this work was conducted.
**Reprint requests: Sanjay Saint, MD, MPH, Division of General Medicine, University of Michigan Department of Internal Medicine, 3116 Taubman Center, Box 0376, Ann Arbor, MI 48109-0376. E-mail: [email protected]
*0196-6553/2000/$12.00 + 0 17/46/99640
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© 2000 Association for Professionals in Infection Control and Epidemiology, Inc. Published by Elsevier Inc. All rights reserved.
