Filling up a hospital admission form, you hope to recover
from whatever your body is suffering from! Be it a life-threatening disease, an
accident, some kind of trauma or anything else, you look forward to feeling
better in a few days. But do you know how many infections the very hospital can
give you as well? Of course, it receives hundreds of patients every day, out of
which some can carry bacteria and viruses with them that can pass on. Besides,
some infections can also be transmitted through hospital equipment and health
care professionals themselves. These hospital transmitted infections are called
nosocomial infections and can seriously affect your body if left untreated.
Here are a few types of nosocomial infections that are commonly found among
hospitalized patients. Have a look.
Ventilator-Associated
Pneumonia
Ventilators are necessary for medically sedated patients or those who slip into a coma due to their bodily diseases and complications. When someone is intubated, the artificial respiration meddles with the airway defences and cause micro-aspiration of secretions full of bacteria. It ultimately results in Ventilator-Associated Pneumonia (VAP), which takes around 48 hours to manifest after the intubation. It’s the most common kind of Nosocomial infection that occurs in critically ill patients. The symptoms include fever, increased heart rate, increased purulent secretions and changes in respiratory assessments and parameters. Pathogens that are involved in causing this infection include Staphylococcus aureus and gram-negative bacilli. In general, the prognosis is poor and depends upon the comorbidities of the patient.
Central
Line-associated Bloodstream Infection (CLABSI)
Usually, patients in a hospital receive medicines through
intravenous catheters (IVs) inserted in their arms, hands and in some cases,
legs or feet. However, when someone is required to get medicines for a long
period of time or when their veins are hard to find due to prolonged
hospitalization, a central line is inserted in one of their major veins. It is
also called a central venous catheter placed in a large vein near the chest,
neck or groin. Now, if any kind of bacteria or viruses enters the bloodstream
via the central line, the patient is most likely to suffer from central-line
associated bloodstream infections (CLABSI). All health care professionals
follow stern precautions while inserting, using and caring for a central line.
The symptoms of CLABSI include fever, redness and soreness around the site of
insertion. It is highly imperative to keep the line sterile and follow all the
practices for its maintenance.
Clostridioides
Difficile Infection (CDI)
C. Difficile is one of the common hospital-acquired
infections that occur after the use of antibiotics. Clostridioides Difficile is
a bacterium that produces toxins and infects the large intestine resulting in
diarrhoea. Along with antibiotics, environmental contamination also plays a big
role in giving rise to CDI. The symptoms of the infection count in watery
stools more than thrice a day, fever, severe abdominal ache, cramping, and
blood in the stool. If this condition is left untreated, some extremely serious
complications may develop including dehydration, kidney failure, toxic
megacolon, bowel perforation, and death.
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