Daily antibiotic cost of nosocomial infections in a Turkish university hospital.
BACKGROUND
Many studies associated nosocomial infections with increased hospital costs due to extra days in hospital, staff time, extra investigations and drug treatment. The cost of antibiotic treatment for these infections represents a significant part of hospital expenditure. This prospective observational study was designed to determine the daily antibiotic cost of nosocomial infections per infected adult patient in Akdeniz University Hospital.


METHODS
All adult patients admitted to the ICUs between January 1, 2000, and June 30, 2003 who had only one nosocomial infection during their stay were included in the study. Infection sites and pathogens, antimicrobial treatment of patient and it's cost were recorded. Daily antibiotic costs were calculated per infected patient.


RESULTS
Among the 8460 study patients, 817 (16.6%) developed 1407 episodes of nosocomial infection. Two hundred thirty three (2.7%) presented with only one nosocomial infection. Mean daily antibiotic cost was 89.64 dollars. Daily antibiotic cost was 99.02 dollars for pneumonia, 94.32 dollars for bloodstream infection, 94.31 dollars for surgical site infection, 52.37 dollars for urinary tract infection, and 162.35 dollars for the other infections per patient. The treatment of Pseudomonas aeruginosa infections was the most expensive infection treated. Piperacillin-tazobactam and amikacin were the most prescribed antibiotics, and meropenem was the most expensive drug for treatment of the nosocomial infections in the ICU.


CONCLUSIONS
Daily antibiotic cost of nosocomial infections is an important part of extra costs that should be reduced providing rational antibiotic usage in hospitals.
Inan
Dilara
D
Department of Infectious Diseases and Clinical Microbiology, Faculty of Medicine, Akdeniz University, Antalya, Turkey. inan@akdeniz.edu.tr
Saba
Rabin
R
Gunseren
Filiz
F
Ongut
Gozde
G
Turhan
Ozge
O
Yalcin
Ata Nevzat
AN
Mamikoglu
Latife
L
D000890:Anti-Infective Agents / Q000191:economics* / Q000627:therapeutic use*; D016470:Bacteremia / Q000188:drug therapy / Q000191:economics; D001419:Bacteria / Q000145:classification / Q000187:drug effects; D002175:Candida / Q000187:drug effects; D002177:Candidiasis / Q000188:drug therapy / Q000191:economics; D003428:Cross Infection / Q000188:drug therapy* / Q000191:economics*; D005260:Female; D006801:Humans; D017053:Infection Control / Q000191:economics*; D008297:Male; D008875:Middle Aged; D011014:Pneumonia / Q000188:drug therapy / Q000191:economics; D013530:Surgical Wound Infection / Q000188:drug therapy / Q000191:economics; D014421:Turkey; D014552:Urinary Tract Infections / Q000188:drug therapy / Q000191:economics
D000890:Anti-Infective Agents