Decrease of hospital- and community-acquired bloodstream infections due to Streptococcus pneumoniae and Streptococcus pyogenes during the first year of the COVID-19 pandemic: A time-series analysis in Paris region.

The impact of the COVID-19 pandemic on bloodstream infections (BSIs) due to Streptococcus pneumoniae and Streptococcus pyogenes was assessed in 25 university hospitals of Paris. Monthly BSIs incidence rates that appeared stable in 2018 and 2019, decreased for the 2 pathogens during the 2 COVID-19 lockdown periods of 2020. Containment policies, including social distancing, masking and hand hygiene strengthening in both community and hospital settings are likely to reduce BSIs due to these pathogens.

Surging bloodstream infections and antimicrobial resistance during the first wave of COVID-19: a study in a large multihospital institution in the Paris region.

OBJECTIVES: This study measured the impact of the first wave of COVID-19 pandemic (COVID-19) (March-April 2020) on the incidence of bloodstream infections (BSIs) at Assistance Publique - Hôpitaux de Paris (APHP), the largest multisite public healthcare institution in France. METHODS: The number of patient admission blood cultures (BCs) collected, number of positive BCs, and antibiotic resistance and consumption were analysed retrospectively for the first quarter of 2020, and also for the first quarter of 2019 for comparison, in 25 APHP hospitals (ca. 14 000 beds). RESULTS: Up to a fourth of patients admitted in March-April 2020 in these hospitals had COVID-19. The BSI rate per 100 admissions increased overall by 24% in March 2020 and 115% in April 2020, and separately for the major pathogens (Escherichia coli, Klebsiella pneumoniae, enterococci, Staphylococcus aureus, Pseudomonas aeruginosa, yeasts). A sharp increase in the rate of BSIs caused by microorganisms resistant to third-generation cephalosporins (3GC) was also observed in March-April 2020, particularly in K. pneumoniae, enterobacterial species naturally producing inducible AmpC (Enterobacter cloacae...), and P. aeruginosa. A concomitant increase in 3GC consumption occurred. CONCLUSIONS: The COVID-19 pandemic had a strong impact on hospital management and also unfavourable effects on severe infections, antimicrobial resistance, and laboratory work diagnostics.