ICU Catheters Causing Deadly Blood Infections Across India, Reveals AIIMS Study
A recent study by Delhi AIIMS has revealed that the use of catheters during treatment in hospitals across India is leading to a significant spread of bloodstream infections.
These infections are prevalent in the Intensive Care Units (ICUs) of many hospitals and are often caused by antibiotic-resistant microbes. This resistance renders antibiotics ineffective, increasing both hospitalisation time and the cost of treatment.
Catheters, which are tubes inserted into the body to deliver fluids, nutrients, and medications or to drain urine, are useful but carry the risk of causing serious infections.
The Lancet Global Health Journal estimates that in Indian ICUs using a central line catheter, which is inserted into a large vein, there are an average of nine cases of bloodstream infection per 1,000 central line-days. These central line-associated bloodstream infections (CLABSI) are mostly hospital-acquired but preventable.
The study underscores the severe impact of these infections on disease and mortality rates in India. Researchers noted that tracking bloodstream infections in ICUs could aid in developing preventive strategies, though creating a structured surveillance system poses challenges due to resource constraints.
The research, which analysed data from 200 ICUs in 54 hospitals nationwide between May 1, 2017 and April 30, 2024, reported 8,629 lab-confirmed CLABSI cases. The rate was 8.83 infections per 1,000 central line-days, with the highest incidence recorded during the COVID-19 pandemic in 2020-21.
Researchers attribute the surge in infections to the high patient load in ICUs, staff shortages, and inadequate infection control measures.
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