Medical Inspection – Health Blog

A total of 236 adult patients were identified by CCAC as having been treated at The Ottawa Hospital or the University of Ottawa Heart Institute with a prescription for IV antimicrobial therapy between November 1, 2003, and October 31, 2004. Consent was obtained from the 75 patients in the selected convenience sample, and their charts were reviewed.Nine of these were subsequently excluded: 2 had not received any IV therapy, 6 had not received IV antimicrobial therapy, and for 1 there was insufficient documentation. Therefore, a total of 66 patients were included in the study. Thirty patients had been treated at the Civic Campus, 26 at the General Campus, and 10 at the University of Ottawa Heart Institute.

Demographic Characteristics

Of the 66 patients, 33 were men, and the mean patient age was 57.2 years (range 19 to 88 years). None of the study patients were taking oral contraceptive agents. Of the 8 patients who were taking warfarin, none received an antimicrobial agent known to have a clinically important interaction with warfarin. Table 1 describes the incidence of allergies, type of IV access, and type of infection treated. canadian pharmacy viagra

Antimicrobial agents were initiated in hospital in 35 cases (53%), in the emergency department in 29 cases (44%), and in the Infectious Disease Clinic in 2 cases (3%). Among the patients who were hospitalized at the time of initiation of therapy, there was an even distribution between the medical and surgical wards (19 [54%] and 16 [46%], respectively). Before discharge, the length of hospital stay (for those who were formally admitted) ranged from 2 to 72 days (mean 16.6 days).

Table 1. Characteristics of 66 Patients Who Received Outpatient Parenteral Antimicrobial Therapy

Venous Access

Three types of venous access were used to administer antimicrobial agents: peripherally inserted central venous catheters (PICC lines), peripheral lines, and subcutaneously implanted venous access devices (Table 1). Most of the peripheral lines (28/30) were inserted in the emergency department. PICC lines were inserted for 33 of the 35 patients who had been admit­ted to hospital. Cefazolin and clindamycin were the most common antibiotics administered through a peripheral line.

Type of Infection

The most common indication for OPAT was cellulitis, but a wide variety of infections were treated (Table 1). Infectious disease specialists were involved in the care of 40 (61%) of the patients, of whom 30 (75%) were initially treated in hospital and 10 (25%) were initially treated in the emergency department or the Infectious Diseases Clinic. Cellulitis, abscess, endocarditis, osteomyelitis, and postsurgical wound infections were the most common infections for which an infectious disease specialist was consulted. The majority of patients who were not seen by an infectious disease specialist (20/26 or 77%) had cellulitis. kamagra tablets

Related Posts:

• A Review of Outpatient Parenteral Antimicrobial Therapy Practices: DISCUSSION part 2
• A Review of Outpatient Parenteral Antimicrobial Therapy Practices: DISCUSSION
• A Review of Outpatient Parenteral Antimicrobial Therapy Practices: Result part 2
• A Review of Outpatient Parenteral Antimicrobial Therapy Practices: METHODS