A study, published in the Journal of Hospital Infection, examines risk factors for Klebsiella pneumoniae carbapenemase-producing K. pneumoniae colonization and infection among hospitalized patients.
Researchers studied patients with Klebsiella pneumoniae carbapenemase-producing K. pneumoniae, or KPC-Kp, colonization or infection in an Australian hospital. The researchers examined the patients from January 2012 to September 2015.
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They found 34 cases of KPC-producing Enterobacteriaceae, including 31 KPC-Kp cases, and matched these with 136 control cases.
Variables associated with KPC-Kp acquisition included:
• Length of hospital stay greater than 28 days (within the past year)
• Prior vancomycin-resistant enterococci colonization
• Central venous catheter
• Gastrointestinal disease and invasive procedures
• Exposure to broad-spectrum antibiotics
Very few patients had a history of overseas travel, showing that "local screening strategies targeting overseas travelers would likely miss many cases," the study authors concluded.