title: Nosocomial infections in a pediatric residential care facility.
abstract: BACKGROUND
  Nosocomial infections have rarely been characterized in pediatric residential care facilities. The purpose of this study is to assess the frequency of and risk factors for infectious diseases in pediatric residential care facilities over a 1-year period and to contrast them with other pediatric extended care facilities.
  
  
  METHODS
  A retrospective chart review was performed at a pediatric residential care facility dedicated exclusively to children with severe physical and mental disabilities. Incidence rates of infection were collected on a census of 109 residents from January 1 through December 31, 2009. Infectious diseases were classified using ICD-9-CM codes. PubMed, Web of Science, and Cumulative Index to Nursing and Allied Health Literature (CINAHL) databases were searched to identify similar studies.
  
  
  RESULTS
  In 2009, the overall incidence rate of infection was 6.21 per 1,000 resident-days of care, with the most frequent being streptococcal or staphylococcal skin infections (1.11 per 1,000 resident-days) and the least frequent being conjunctivitis (0.16 per 1,000 resident-days). Extensive literature reviews yielded 2 published studies that evaluated infections in pediatric extended care facilities; these studies exhibited distinct prevalences of infectious diseases when compared with the current study.
  
  
  CONCLUSIONS
  Studies examining nosocomial infections should not consider pediatric extended care facilities as 1 single entity given the heterogeneity among these facilities.
authors: Department of Community and Preventive Medicine, University of Rochester, Rochester, NY, USA.
authors: Amir
authors: A
authors: Abdolahi
authors: Susan G
authors: SG
authors: Fisher
authors: Carla
authors: C
authors: Aquino
authors: Hind A
authors: HA
authors: Beydoun
mesh_terms: D000293:Adolescent; D002648:Child; D002675:Child, Preschool; D003428:Cross Infection / Q000453:epidemiology*; D005260:Female; D006801:Humans; D015994:Incidence; D007223:Infant; D007231:Infant, Newborn; D008297:Male; D012112:Residential Facilities; D012189:Retrospective Studies; D012307:Risk Factors; D055815:Young Adult