ABSTRACT
It has been estimated that every year between 5 and 10% of patients admitted to hospitals in the United States and Europe will acquire an infection that was not present before they were admitted to the hospital [1]. A number of these nosocomial (hospital-acquired) infections lead to the patient’s death at one extreme or, at the least, require additional antimicrobial chemotherapy. Among critically ill patients, the prevalence of hospital-acquired infection can reach 50% in intensive care units, where patients remain for prolonged periods, often undergoing invasive therapeutic support, such as mechanical ventilation. Within hospitals, the surgical and medical wards usually have the highest infection rates, while pediatric and neonatal services have the lowest.
