Incidence and epidemiology of nosocomial infections in patients infected with human immunodeficiency virus.

In a prospective study, we investigated the incidence, characteristics, and risk factors of nosocomial infections (NIs) in patients with human immunodeficiency virus disease. There was a total of 528 admissions of 405 eligible patients; 46 NIs (8.7% per discharge) were identified in 39 patients. The proportional frequencies of NIs were as follows: 16 skin and/or soft-tissue infections (including localized catheter-associated infections), 3.0%; 14 respiratory tract infections, 2.7%; 11 bloodstream infections, 2.1%; and 5 urinary tract infections, 0.9%. The most common etiologic agents were Staphylococcus aureus (27.6%), Pseudomonas aeruginosa (13.8%), and Enterobacter cloacae (13.8%). The duration of hospitalization was not significantly prolonged by NI in the cohort.