title: Nosocomial infection in surgery wards: a controlled study of increased duration of hospital stays and direct cost of hospitalization.
abstract: Excess length of hospital stays and associated costs were assessed in patients hospitalized in the department of general and digestive surgery who acquired nosocomial infections. A prospective study of matched infected-uninfected patients nested in a cohort was used to estimate the length of the hospital stay of infected patients. Matched controls were obtained with respect to patient exact primary diagnosis, operative procedure and classification, age and, if possible, underlying disease, elective or emergency procedure and invasive devices. Superficial surgical wound infection prolonged the average hospital stay of the nosocomially infected patient by an average of 12.6 days, wound infection (deep and superficial) by 14.3 days and infections other than wound infection by 7.3 days as compared to the uninfected matched controls.
authors.affiliation: Department of Preventive Medicine, Hospital Ramon y Cajal.
authors.forename: A A
authors.initials: AA
authors.lastname: Vegas
authors.forename: V M
authors.initials: VM
authors.lastname: Jodra
authors.forename: M L
authors.initials: ML
authors.lastname: García
mesh_terms: D015331:Cohort Studies; D003428:Cross Infection / Q000191:economics / Q000453:epidemiology*; D005260:Female; D017721:Hospital Costs; D006801:Humans; D007902:Length of Stay / Q000191:economics*; D008297:Male; D008875:Middle Aged; D011446:Prospective Studies; D013030:Spain / Q000453:epidemiology; D013503:Surgery Department, Hospital / Q000706:statistics & numerical data*; D013530:Surgical Wound Infection / Q000191:economics / Q000453:epidemiology