Association between climate and Enterobacter colonization in Swedish neonatal units.
OBJECTIVE
To study risk factors for the highly variable local colonization rates with unrelated Enterobacter species strains previously found in 22 Swedish neonatal units (0% to 32.4% of the infants).


METHODS
The fecal Enterobacter species carriage rates among 953 infants in the 22 special-care neonatal units were correlated with variables related to the ward (size, crowding, staffing, work load, antibiotic usage, level of care, hygienic precautions), and the hospital (temperature of water supplied, geographical location).


RESULTS
The average Enterobacter species carriage rate was highest at seven days of age (17% of the infants) and then declined to 3%. Only location of the hospital in an area with warmer climate according to horticultural zone showed an association with Enterobacter species carriage in multivariate analysis (P = 0.005).


CONCLUSIONS
Although Enterobacter species mainly cause nosocomially acquired infections, the occurrence of the organism in special-care neonatal units seemed to be determined more by extrahospital than by intrahospital factors.
Fryklund
B A
BA
Swedish Institute for Infectious Disease Control, Stockholm.
Tullus
K
K
Burman
L G
LG
D002353:Carrier State / Q000382:microbiology*; D002980:Climate; D015169:Colony Count, Microbial; D004754:Enterobacter / Q000254:growth & development / Q000302:isolation & purification*; D004756:Enterobacteriaceae Infections / Q000382:microbiology*; D005243:Feces / Q000382:microbiology; D006801:Humans; D007231:Infant, Newborn; D007363:Intensive Care Units, Neonatal; D012307:Risk Factors; D013548:Sweden