CDC data shows 1 in 25 patients have hospital-acquired infection

One in 25 patients in U.S. hospitals has an infection acquired as part of his or her care despite modest progress in controlling those pathogens inside medical facilities, the Centers for Disease Control and Prevention reported last week in its most comprehensive look at the issue (Source: “One in 25 patients has an infection acquired during hospital stay, CDC says,” Washington Post, March 26, 2014).

According to the study, which was published in the New England Journal of Medicine, the CDC’s 2011 survey of 183 hospitals showed that an estimated 648,000 patients nationwide suffered 721,000 infections, and 75,000 of them died — though it is impossible to tell from the data how many deaths were directly attributable to the acquired infection, said Michael Bell, deputy director of CDC’s division of health care quality promotion.

Nevertheless, “today and every day, more than 200 Americans with healthcare-associated infections will die during their hospital stay,” CDC Director Tom Frieden said in a news release.