Kalorama: Antibiotic Drug Resistance Leads to HAI Deaths

NEW YORK, Aug. 13, 2014 /PRNewswire/ -- Antibiotic drug resistance is considered to play a part in 75,000 hospital acquired infection (HAI) deaths per year in the U.S., according to recent analysis by Kalorama Information. The healthcare market research publisher found that drug resistance is becoming more of an issue across the entire anti-infective continuum, despite indications that screening patients in the hospital would help to identify those patients that may be carriers of multi-drug resistant organisms.

Kalorama Information, in its report Healthcare Infection Control Market, notes that patients, third party payers, and tax payers through Medicare and Medicaid payments shoulder the added expense of hospital infections -- an estimated $35-40 billion in costs each year in the U.S. The report can be found at: http://www.marketresearch.com/redirect.asp?progid=86511&url=http%3A%2F%2Fwww%2Ekaloramainformation%2Ecom%2FHealthcare%2DAssociated%2DInfection%2D8143524%2F

"Hospital acquired infections erode hospital profits, which can limit the services and care provided to patients," report analyst Melissa Elder related. "Costs from infections at the hospital level are often not completely covered by a payer, leading to a negative impact on the bottom line of hospitals, which further strengthens the need to reduce HAIs."

According to Elder, Indirect costs include lost worker productivity/wages, psychological damages, mortality, and change in social function. Direct hospital costs include labor, building overhead, damages payment, utilities, staffing, consultations, treatment, therapy, devices, supplies, equipment, medications, and food.

The resistance to drugs is considered a natural response to the selective pressure of drug therapy. Although this is a natural course, the effects of resistance can be amplified or accelerated by several other factors including: abuse or misuse of anti-infectives; poor quality of drugs available (most common in underdeveloped regions); poor patient compliance and reduced course of treatment due to cost constraints.

In the CDC Guidelines for Isolation Precautions in Hospitals, the Hospital Infection Control Practices Advisory Committee noted that transmission of infections requires a source, a host and actual transmission. According to the guidelines, the most frequent mode of transmission is direct surface contact and physical transfer of microorganisms between a susceptible host and an infected or colonized person. "Infection intervention programs have long stressed direct contact precautions but have not adequately addressed direct body surface to body surface contact," noted Elder.

According to the report, HAIs are currently being addressed through an annual provision in the Affordable Care Act (ACA).  The ACA allows funding for each state which participates in improving HAI prevention infrastructures or implementing new infrastructure measures. During 2013, the U.S. provided more than $11 million in state funding for HAI prevention infrastructure projects and development.  

Healthcare Infection Control Market notes the issues and trends affecting the infection control market and provides information regarding leading competitors in that market. The report can be found along with other industry leading research from Kalorama Information at: http://www.kaloramainformation.com/.

About Kalorama Information -- Kalorama Information, a division of MarketResearch.com, supplies the latest in independent medical market research in diagnostics, biotech, pharmaceuticals, medical devices and healthcare; as well as a full range of custom research services. We routinely assist the media with healthcare topics. Follow us on Twitter, LinkedIn and our blog.

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www.KaloramaInformation.com  
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SOURCE Kalorama Information