Is Hospital-Onset Bloodstream Infection (HOBSI) a Useful Measure to Evaluate Infection Prevention Progress?

Background: Acute-care hospitals in the United States are required to submit 6 healthcare-associated infection (HAI) metrics to the CMS for reporting and performance purposes prior to payment. We examined the association between HAI rate trends and hospital-onset bloodstream infection (HO-BSI) rate trends across a large, multihospital health system. Methods: HO-BSI events were identified across 52 hospitals attributable to Staphylococcus aureus, Pseudomonas aeruginosa, Escherichia coli, Klebsiella pneumoniae, or Candida spp using the NHSN Lab ID event definition of ≥day 4 of admission. We compared the performance from January 2016 to March 2019 for HO-BSI and the 6 NHSN-defined HAIs: central-line–associated bloodstream infection (CLABSI), catheter-associated urinary tract infection (CAUTI), Clostridioides difficile, methicillin-resistant Staphylococcus aureus (MRSA) bacteremia, abdominal hysterectomy surgical site infections (SSIs), and colon SSI. We calculated 2 “infection composite scores” to account for the 6 HAIs based on all observed or predicted events (score 1) and an average of the 6 HAI standardized infection ratios (SIRs; score 2). We normalized both measures to 1 for a 12-months rolling baseline. We evaluated the HO-BSI rate change over time and compared it to the change in the infection score over the same period. We compared the change in the 12-month rolling rates of the 2 HAI scores and the HO-BSI rate. Results: During the 39-month period, 3,288 HO-BSI events occurred over 9,775,118 patient days. The source of HO-BSI events included S. aureus (33.5%), P. aeruginosa (10.2%), E. coli (19.7%), K. pneumoniae (13.8%), and Candida spp (22.8%). HO-BSI event rates decreased by 17.3% from 12-month rolling baseline to last 12 months (3.70 vs 3.06 per 10,000 patient days). Similarly, 7,648 HAI events were observed, with the source of events being Clostridioides difficile (57.0%), CAUTI (15.1%), CLABSI (12.8%), MRSA (7.0%), colon SSI (6.4%), and abdominal hysterectomy SSI (1.7%). The 2 HAI scores and the HO-BSI rate all showed a notable decrease from the 2016 baseline period (Fig. 1). The reductions in the HAI scores were both strongly correlated with the reduction in the HO-BSI rate, with the HAI score 1 having a stronger correlation (r = 0.949; P < .001) than was observed for HAI score 2 (r = 0.867; P < .001). Conclusions: Utilization of a HO-BSI measure may prove useful as a correlated but distinct marker of infection prevention improvement or trends. HO-BSI could be useful as an objective electronically obtainable measure to assist in the evaluation of performance within and across facilities.Funding: NoneDisclosures: None

Treatment of persistent hiccups after arthroplasty: effects of acupuncture at PC6, CV12 and ST36

Objective: There are multiple treatment options for hiccups, including non-pharmacological therapies, but little evidence of superiority of one treatment over another. The aim of this study was to investigate the effects of acupuncture on persistent hiccups after arthroplasty. Methods: From April 2010 to December 2015, 15 patients with primary unilateral total hip/knee arthroplasty were diagnosed with persistent hiccups and given acupuncture at PC6, CV12 and ST36. Each acupuncture session lasted 30 min. The total number of treatment sessions was determined by the persistence of symptoms, but acupuncture was administered no more than three times over the course of a week. The hiccups assessment instrument (HAI) was used to assess the severity of hiccups pre-treatment and post-treatment. Adverse events were also recorded. Results: Absolute resolution was observed in all 15 patients after less than three acupuncture sessions. Of these, 10 patients required only one acupuncture session, 3 patients required two sessions and 2 patients required three sessions. The HAI score improved after each round of acupuncture treatment (P<0.05). The average HAI score improved significantly post-acupuncture compared to baseline values pre-treatment (P<0.05). Symptoms accompanying the hiccups included pain in the diaphragmatic area (five patients), mild dyspnoea (three patients), dysphagia (two patients) and nausea/vomiting (one patient). All these accompanying symptoms disappeared at the point of resolution of the hiccups. There were no adverse effects related to acupuncture during the study period. Conclusion: Based on our results, acupuncture may represent a potential treatment option for hiccups after arthroplasty. Caution must be exercised, however, given the lack of a control group. Accordingly, randomised controlled trials will be required to verify the efficacy and effectiveness of acupuncture for the treatment of hiccups.

Effect of Intentional Weight Loss on Mortality Biomarkers in Older Adults With Obesity

Background Observational research has identified several mortality biomarkers; however, their responsiveness to change is unknown. We tested whether the Healthy Aging Index (HAI) and other mortality biomarkers were responsive to intentional weight loss (WL), which is associated with lower mortality risk in recent meta-analyses. Methods Older adults (70.3 ± 3.7 years) with obesity were randomized into a 6-month WL (n = 47) or weight stability (WS: ±5% baseline weight; n = 48) program. Baseline and 6-month HAI score (0–10) was calculated from component sum (each 0–2: systolic blood pressure, forced vital capacity [FVC], creatinine, fasting blood glucose [FBG], Montreal Cognitive Assessment), and gait speed, grip strength, Digit Symbol Substitution Test, FEV1, Interleukin-6, C-Reactive Protein, and Cystatin-C were assessed at baseline and 6 months. Results Mean baseline HAI was 3.2 ± 1.6. By 6 months, WL participants lost 8.87 (95% CI: −10.40, −7.34) kg, whereas WS participants remained weight stable. WL group reduced HAI score (WL: −0.75 [95% CI: −1.11, −0.39] vs WS: −0.22 [95% CI: −0.60, 0.15]; p = .04), and components changing the most were FBG (WL: −3.89 [95% CI: −7.78, 0.00] mg/dL vs WS: 1.45 [95% CI: −2.61, 5.50] mg/dL; p = .047) and FVC (WL: 0.11 [95% CI: −0.01, 0.23] L vs WS: −0.05 [95% CI: −0.17, 0.08] L; p = .06). Among other biomarkers, only Cystatin-C significantly changed (WL: −2.53 [95% CI: −4.38, −0.68] ng/mL vs WS: 0.07 [95% CI: −1.85, 1.98] ng/mL; p = .04). Combining treatment groups, 1 kg WL was associated with a 0.07 (95% CI: 0.03, 0.12) HAI reduction (p &lt; .01). Conclusion Intentional WL via caloric restriction reduced HAI score by 0.53 points, largely attributable to metabolic and pulmonary improvements.

Comparison of histology activity index scores in patients with HBeAg positive and HBeAg negative CHB to see difference in severity of liver injury

The aim of this study is to compare histology activity index (HAI) scores in patients with HBeAg positive and HBeAg negative CHB to see if there is any difference in severity of liver injury between these two types of HBV. We did percutaneous liver biopsies of 77 CHB patients. Serum HBeAg status were assessed in all study subjects. Of them, 37.66% patients (29/77) had HBeAg positive HBV infection, while the rest 62.33% (48/77) had HBeAg negative HBV infection. 22/48 (27.78%) patients with HBeAg negative CHB had mild to moderate CH (HAI score 4-12) and 26/48 (72.22%) patients had minimal CH (HAI score 1-3). In contrast, mild to moderate CH was seen in 19/29(72.23%) patients with HBeAg positive CHB. The study shows there is no correlation between the necro-inflammatory activity in the liver and HBeAg status in the ser um in patients with CHB. DOI: http://dx.doi.org/10.3329/bmj.v42i1.18970 Bangladesh Med J. 2013 Jan; 42 (1): 7-10