Impact of new water systems on healthcare-associated colonization or infection with Pseudomonas aeruginosa

Abstract

Aim: We aimed to study the impact of new water systems, which were less contaminated with , on the incidence of healthcare-associated cases (colonizations or infections) in care units that moved to a different building between 2005 and 2014. Methods: Generalized Estimated Equations were used to compare the incidence of healthcare-associated cases according to the building. Results: Twenty-nine units moved during the study period and 2,759 cases occurred in these units. No difference was observed when the new building was compared with older buildings overall.Conclusion: Our results did not support our hypothesis of a positive association between water system contamination and the incidence of healthcare-associated cases. These results must be confirmed by linking results of water samples and patients’ data.

Keywords

• Pseudomonas aeruginosa
• water systems
• healthcare-associated infections
• infection control