Abstract Background Clostridioides difficile infection (CDI) continues to be a major global public health concern, particularly during the ongoing SARS-CoV-2 coronavirus disease 2019 (COVID-19) pandemic. Despite new social distancing guidelines and enhanced infection control procedures (e.g., masking, hand hygiene) being implemented since the beginning of COVID-19, little evidence indicates whether these changes have influenced the prevalence of CDI hospitalizations. This study aims to measure CDI prevalence before and during the COVID-19 pandemic in a local cohort of U.S. Veterans. Methods This was a cross-sectional study of all Veterans presenting to the South Texas Veterans Health Care System in San Antonio, Texas from Jan 1, 2019 to Apr 30, 2021. Monthly laboratory confirmed CDI events were collected overall and categorized as the following: hospital-onset, healthcare facility-associated (HO-HCFA-CDI), community-onset, healthcare facility-associated CDI (CO-HCFA-CDI), and community-associated CDI (CA-CDI). Monthly confirmed COVID-19 cases were also collected. CDI prevalence was calculated as CDI events per 10,000 bed days of care (BDOC) and was compared between pre-pandemic (Jan 2019-Feb 2020) and pandemic (Mar 2020-Apr 2021) periods. Results A total of 285 CDI events, 920 COVID-19 cases, and 104,220 BDOC were included in this study. The overall CDI rate increased from 20.33 per 10,000 BDOC pre-pandemic to 34.51 per 10,000 during the pandemic (p< 0.0001). This was driven primarily by a rise in CO-HCFA-CDI rates (0.95 vs 2.52 per 10,000 BDOC; p< 0.0001) during the pandemic, followed by increases in CA-CDI (15.58 vs. 18.61 per 10,000 BDOC; p< 0.0001) and HO-HCFA-CDI (2.66 vs. 5.43 per 10,000 BDOC; p< 0.0001). Lastly, CDI rates have tripled since the start of the pandemic (March-Apr 2020) compared to the current year (March-Apr 2021) (14.69 vs. 43.76 per 10,000 BDOC). Conclusion Overall, CDI prevalence increased during the COVID-19 pandemic, driven mostly by an increase in CO-HCFA-CDI. As COVID-19 rates increased, CDI rates also increased, likely due to greater healthcare exposures and antibiotic use. Continued surveillance of COVID-19 and CDI is warranted to further decrease infection rates Disclosures All Authors: No reported disclosures
Abstract Background Healthcare-associated infections (HAI) have tremendously increased since the coronavirus-19 pandemic. With this increase, various attempts should be made to keep multidrug-resistant organisms in check. In 2021, the Veterans Affairs in San Antonio identified a patient with a multidrug-resistant Acinetobacter baumannii complex (MDR-A). This study was undertaken to determine the temporal and spatial relationship of similarly identified MDR-A from other patients at our facility to help prevent spread. We highlight the role whole-genome sequencing plays in a nosocomial outbreak investigation. Methods Since the identification of the first MDR-A, we performed interventions to include closure of the unit for new admissions, terminal cleaning, and collection of nasopharyngeal, peri-rectal, urine and wound swabs for surveillance. 15 positive samples were sent from our facility to Multidrug- Resistant Organism Repository and Surveillance Network (MRSN) for genotyping. Results Genotyping results confirmed that there were only one to four Single Nucleotide Polymorphism (SNP) variations between three of the patient isolates indicating that these were genetically related with likely nosocomial transmission. All isolates carried an OXA-23 carbapenemase and a 16S rRNA methyltransferase which conferred resistance to all clinically relevant aminoglycosides. Overall, twelve isolates were identified from our facility with < =4 SNP variations interlinking them with prior isolates sent to MRSN. MRSN identified 2-45 SNP variations between 87 isolates from seven different hospitals in South Texas (Figure 1). Environmental sampling in our hospital revealed an Acinetobacter baumannii isolated from shower trolleys. Since the organism isolated was identical, spread was presumed secondary to the contaminated shower trolley. MDR-A cluster indicating interrelation between various isolates from seven different facilities in South Texas. This figure depicts four common isolates pictured in the center, which resulted in SNP variations and spread across seven facilities in South Texas. The SNP variations between isolates are noted here. Several inter-facility spread of MDR-A took place as can be seen here. Abbreviations: SNP, Single Nucleotide Polymorphisms; MDR-A, Multidrug Resistant Acinetobacter baumannii complex Conclusion Spread of MDR-A from our index case was linked to transmission from shower trolleys. These were disinfected, and focused disinfection of all high-touch surfaces was undertaken in addition. Further spread was successfully prevented and no other cases with MDR-A identified thereafter. This case highlights the critical steps in outbreak investigation and highlights the importance of whole-genome sequencing in this process. Disclosures All Authors: No reported disclosures
Abstract Background Tuberculosis (TB) remains a significant public health concern, and exposure in healthcare settings is prevalent. Current guidelines recommend testing for TB by acid-fast bacilli (AFB) smear microscopy with 3 sputum samples and/or using nucleic acid amplification test (NAAT), and mycobacterium culture. The purpose of this project is to compare how different TB diagnostic tests affect the duration of stay in respiratory isolation. Methods This study was conducted at the Veteran Affairs South Texas hospital, which includes a total of 437 beds. Data were collected retrospectively from medical records. Eligibility included patients admitted to the hospital and placed in airborne isolation for TB screening and diagnosis, had 3 sputum samples collected 8 hours apart and/or had 2 PCR MTB/RIF. Patients were excluded if they had TB or were not undergoing evaluation for TB. Three time periods analyzed included, 3 AFB sputum samples analyzed in-house from December 2012 to January 2014 (Group A), 3 AFB sputum samples analyzed at outside facility during 2013 to 2014 as well as 2 months in 2012 (Group B), and 2 MTB PCR/RIF in house during 2017 and 2018 (Group C). Duration of isolation was compared between groups using the Kruskal–Wallis test. A total number of 815 patients were screened, leaving 105 patients for analysis after exclusion. There were 49 patients analyzed from Group A, 28 from Group B, and 28 from Group C. Results Crude analysis of the data showed numerical differences in the total number of days and hours in isolation between the 3 groups. The average (mean) days in isolation were 4.2 for Group A, 7.4 for Group B, and 5.5 for Group C. There was no statistically significant difference in either days or hours of airborne precautions by “rule out” method. Days of isolation in airborne precautions (median IQR) was 4 for all groups (P = 0.3313). Likewise, hours of airborne precautions had a median IQR of 96 for all groups P = 0.4347. Conclusion Although there was no statistical significance between the groups, crude analysis did show a numerical difference in the mean total airborne days and hours. Lack of statistical difference may be due to low number of patients, timing of order placement for in-house PCR, and longer than expected stay in airborne precautions. Disclosures All authors: No reported disclosures.
Abstract Background Prior to the COVID-19 pandemic, the incidence of infection related ventilator associated complications plus possible ventilator associated pneumonias (IVAC+) was decreasing; however, as the number of COVID-19 hospitalizations increased, so did the number of IVAC+. Our goal was to investigate if there was a relationship between these two occurrences. Methods This was a retrospective study at the Audie Murphy VA Hospital (ALMVA) from October 2017 to December 2021. ALMVA is a level 1A facility with 232 beds and an active bone marrow transplant program in San Antonio, Texas. This study included acute care COVID-19 hospitalizations per 10,000 bed days of care and IVAC+ per 1000 ventilator days. Monthly acute and intensive care COVID-19 hospitalization rates were correlated with IVAC+ rates using Pearson correlation for the overall study period and in the subgroup of COVID pandemic months (Mar 2020-December 2021). Results During the overall study period, COVID-19 hospitalization rates were significantly associated with IVAC+ rates: acute care correlation 0.86 (p< 0.01) and intensive care correlation 0.33 (p=0.04). During the COVID-19 pandemic months, acute care COVID-19 hospitalizations but not intensive care COVID-19 hospitalizations, were correlated with IVAC+ (correlation 0.90, p< 0.01 and correlation 0.21, p=0.53, respectively). There were 0 IVAC+ before the pandemic months and this rose to 14 during (0 per 1000 ventilator days and 3.05 per 1000 ventilator days, respectively). All but 2 cases of IVAC+ had COVID-19. COVID-19 Hospitalizations and IVAC Plus, October 2017 to December 2021 A sharp increase in COVID-19 hospitalizations correlated with a rise in patients meeting criteria for IVAC Plus. Conclusion The natural history of COVID-19 disease has presented challenges for IVAC+ monitoring. COVID-19 can cause persistent fevers and worsening oxygenation, and antibiotic use is common during periods of clinical deterioration. These factors can fulfill criteria for IVAC+. In this study, each IVAC+ case was traced for safety bundle compliance. These bundles were followed, along with conservative fluid management, low tidal volume ventilation, and sedation breaks. Patients met NHSN criteria for IVAC+ despite these measures and most had COVID-19. Given the common occurrence of IVAC+ in COVID-19 patients, futures studies are needed to define if IVAC+ are preventable in this population and whether IVAC+ surveillance has any value among COVID-19 patients. Disclosures All Authors: No reported disclosures.
