8 recent infection control study findings - Becker's Hospital Review

Here are eight studies on infection control that Becker's has covered since July 12: 

1. Smaller community hospitals have been most affected by the COVID-19-related uptick in healthcare-associated infections, a study published Aug. 23 in Clinical Infectious Diseases found.

2. The prevalence of Clostridioides difficile infections decreased during the COVID-19 pandemic, but inpatient mortality and treatment costs went up, a study published Aug. 25 in Open Forum Infectious Diseases found.

3. Standard surgical masks do not fully seal around a person's face, allowing for more participle exposure. But simply adding two rubber bands may improve the seal and offer N95 respirator-level protection, according to researchers at Michigan Medicine in Ann Arbor. 

4. Misuse of gloves may have increased rates of hospital-acquired infections during COVID-19, a report published Aug. 29 in Nursing Times found.

5. A study of more than 2,900 healthcare workers in Switzerland found those who reported using respirator masks were 40 percent less likely to contract COVID-19 than those wearing surgical masks after being exposed to COVID-19 patients. 

6. The CDC found 1 in 10 infections caused by a type of multidrug-resistant bacterial pathogen are community-associated, occurring in patients who had not been exposed to healthcare-linked risks, like hospitalizations.

7. The pandemic has exacted a significant toll on infection prevention professionals working in hospitals and other healthcare settings nationwide, according to a study published July 13 in the American Journal of Infection Control.

8. Antimicrobial-resistant infections have increased during the pandemic, with deaths rising by 15 percent from 2019 to 2020, according to the CDC's "COVID-19: US Impact on Antimicrobial Resistance, Special Report 2022."