The Journal of hospital infection
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Multicenter Study Observational Study
Nationwide study on peripheral-venous-catheter-associated-bloodstream infections in internal medicine departments.
The use of peripheral venous catheters (PVCs) has increased outside intensive care units, as has the rate of PVC-associated-bloodstream infection (PVC-BSI). PVCs are widely used in internal medicine departments (IMDs), but data on the incidence of PVC-BSI and its characteristics in IMDs are scarce. ⋯ PVCs carry a significant risk for bacteraemia in Spanish IMDs. Phlebitis is not always clinically evident in patients with bacteraemia in this population. The study findings support the need for educational and interventional preventive measures in both IMDs and emergency departments to reduce the rate of PVC-BSI and associated comorbidities, and costs.
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Antimicrobial stewardship programmes (ASPs) have been effective in optimizing antibiotic use for inpatients. However, an emergency department's fast-paced clinical setting can be challenging for a successful ASP. ⋯ The implementation of an ASP markedly decreased the number of unnecessary antimicrobial prescriptions, but had little impact on most other aspects of inappropriate prescribing.