title: Ventilator-associated pneumonia: a review.
abstract: Ventilator-associated pneumonia (VAP) is the most frequent intensive-care-unit (ICU)-acquired infection, with an incidence ranging from 6 to 52% [1,2,3,4]. Several studies have shown that critically ill patients are at high risk for getting such nosocomial infections [3,4]. VAP continues to be a major cause of morbidity, mortality and increased financial burden in ICUs [5,6,7,8]. Over the years there has been a significant advance in our understanding of ventilator associated pneumonia. This article reviews the various aspects of VAP such as definition, risk factors, etiological agents, diagnosis, treatment and prevention with emphasis on the recent advances.
authors.affiliation: Department of Microbiology, Jawaharlal Institute of Postgraduate Medical Education and Research, Pondicherry, India. noyaljoseph@yahoo.com
authors.forename: Noyal Mariya
authors.initials: NM
authors.lastname: Joseph
authors.forename: Sujatha
authors.initials: S
authors.lastname: Sistla
authors.forename: Tarun Kumar
authors.initials: TK
authors.lastname: Dutta
authors.forename: Ashok Shankar
authors.initials: AS
authors.lastname: Badhe
authors.forename: Subhash Chandra
authors.initials: SC
authors.lastname: Parija
mesh_terms: D003428:Cross Infection / Q000175:diagnosis / Q000188:drug therapy* / Q000401:mortality*; D018432:Drug Resistance, Multiple; D006801:Humans; D017053:Infection Control; D007362:Intensive Care Units / Q000706:statistics & numerical data; D018410:Pneumonia, Bacterial / Q000175:diagnosis / Q000188:drug therapy* / Q000401:mortality*; D012121:Respiration, Artificial / Q000009:adverse effects* / Q000706:statistics & numerical data; D012307:Risk Factors