title: Regional differences in vancomycin-resistant Enterococcus colonization rates in critically ill veterans.
abstract: Screening for vancomycin-resistant Enterococcus (VRE) has not been universally implemented within the Department of Veterans Affairs (VA). A prospective study was conducted to identify the admission prevalence rate of VRE in patients admitted to the intensive care unit in 2 VA facilities. Significant regional differences were found between the 2 facilities. Further studies are needed to account for regional differences in VRE admission prevalence, to optimize infection control interventions.
authors.affiliation: William S. Middleton Memorial VA Hospital, Madison, WI. Electronic address: Linda.mckinley2@va.gov.
authors.forename: Linda
authors.initials: L
authors.lastname: McKinley
authors.affiliation: Philadelphia VA Medical Center, Philadelphia, PA; College of Nursing, Villanova University, Villanova, PA.
authors.forename: Helene
authors.initials: H
authors.lastname: Moriarty
authors.affiliation: John Carroll University, University Heights, OH.
authors.forename: Thomas H
authors.initials: TH
authors.lastname: Short
authors.affiliation: Milwaukee VA Medical Center, Milwaukee, WI.
authors.forename: Mary
authors.initials: M
authors.lastname: Hagle
authors.affiliation: Milwaukee VA Medical Center, Milwaukee, WI.
authors.forename: Abigail
authors.initials: A
authors.lastname: Ranum
authors.affiliation: William S. Middleton Memorial VA Hospital, Madison, WI; Milwaukee VA Medical Center, Milwaukee, WI.
authors.forename: Susan
authors.initials: S
authors.lastname: Valentine
authors.affiliation: William S. Middleton Memorial VA Hospital, Madison, WI; University of Wisconsin, Madison, WI.
authors.forename: Nasia
authors.initials: N
authors.lastname: Safdar
mesh_terms: D002353:Carrier State / Q000453:epidemiology* / Q000382:microbiology*; D016638:Critical Illness; D003428:Cross Infection / Q000453:epidemiology / Q000382:microbiology; D005843:Geography; D016908:Gram-Positive Bacterial Infections / Q000453:epidemiology* / Q000382:microbiology*; D006801:Humans; D015995:Prevalence; D011446:Prospective Studies; D065507:Vancomycin-Resistant Enterococci / Q000302:isolation & purification*; D014728:Veterans
keywords: Antibiotic-resistant organism; Health care-associated infection