Risk for Healthcare-Associated Bacteremia in the Elderly

Individuals aged ≥65 are more likely than others to have bloodstream infections. For this group, healthcare exposure comes via many routes, including nursing home residence, recurrent hospitalization, home care, hemodialysis or intravenous therapy, and wound management. Infections acquired through such exposures are now categorized as “healthcare-associated” (HCA), as opposed to nosocomial (N) or community-acquired (CA). To examine the role of healthcare-associated exposures in bloodstream infections, researchers undertook a retrospective, population-based study using in- and outpatient records for residents of Olmstead County, Minnesota.

The researchers identified 347 patients who had positive blood cultures between January 2003 and Decembe…