[Legal Obligation to Notify Severe Clostridiodes difficile Infections - Data from Frankfurt am Main, Germany. Overview and Discussion]. / Meldepflicht für schwere Clostridiodes difficile ­ Infektionen ­ Daten aus Frankfurt am Main, 2014­2018. Bestandsaufnahme und Diskussion.

BACKGROUND: Clostridioides difficile (C. difficile) is the most frequently identified causative agent of antibiotic-associated diarrhea in industrialized countries. As early as 2007, severe C. difficile infections (CDI) were to be notified in Germany as a "threatening disease with an indication of grave danger to the general public". In 2016, the Notification Adjustment Ordinance put in force a duty to notify CDI with a clinically severe course. Here, the necessity and suitability of mandatory notification of severe CDI in Frankfurt am Main, Germany, 2014-2018 is examined. MATERIAL/METHOD: Cases of CDI reported to the health department Frankfurt am Main were compared with the C. difficile-associated deaths in Frankfurt for 2014-2018. The results were compared with data from the literature, the national reporting data according to the Infection Protection Act (IfSG), the mortality statistics, the hospital treatment data as well as the hospital surveillance data of the German hospital infection surveillance system for C difficile-associated diarrhea (CDAD). RESULTS: With the entry into force of the new Notification Adjustment Ordinance, the number of CDIs reported annually in Frankfurt am Main increased from 5-8 to 13-14; however, in all years (with the exception of 2016), the number of deaths (death-leading illness or previous cause) was -17-50 per year and thus well above the number of reported CDI-cases according to the German Infection Protection Act. CONCLUSION: The notification data from Frankfurt am Main show an approx. 2-fold lower score compared to the CDI-associated deaths. From the data of the Hospital Surveillance System (CDAD-KISS), it can be estimated that the majority of the cases are not notified. While an increase in CDI notifications is reported nationwide, there is a decrease in data from nationwide death statistics, hospital treatment data and CDI prevalence, and an increase in incidence of severe CDI. Therefore, and taking into account legal requirements of the IfSG and the options for action of the health authorities according to § 23 (4) Infection prevention act (IfSG), and regarding European recommendations and available data on CDI surveillance, the obligation to notify CDI should be lifted.

Antibiotic consumption surveillance in rehabilitation facilities - a new task according to § 23 of the German Infection Protection Act. Data from rehabilitation facilities in the Rhine-Main area, 2016-2018.

Background: Multidrug-resistant pathogens are a major health problem in many countries. In Germany, in accordance with the German Antibiotic Resistance Strategy (DART), the surveillance of antibiotic consumption in acute care hospitals and rehabilitation facilities was made mandatory by the Infection Protection Act in 2011 and 2017. Whereas comparable reference data for acute care hospitals are available, such data is lacking for rehabilitation facilities. Therefore, the Rhine-Main network on MDRO (Multi Drug Resistant Organisms) has offered to evaluate the antibiotic consumption of the network's rehabilitation facilities. Antimicrobial consumption (if possible already given as daily defined doses, DDD) and patient days from 2016-2018 were requested. Materials and methods: By October 31, 2019, nine clinics, including a facility for early neurological rehabilitation, reported their consumption of antibiotics (mostly already as DDD) and patient days from 2016-2018. The information from the clinics was entered in an Excel table and the DDD calculated if necessary. In order to compare the facilities, the DDD/100 patient days (pd) were calculated for the individual active substances. Results: Antibiotic consumption in general rehabilitation facilities decreased slightly from 4.8 DDD/100 pd to 4.4 DDD/100 pd from 2016 to 2018. In early neurological rehabilitation, antibiotic consumption increased from 10.2 DDD/100 pd to 13.1 DDD/100 pd in the same period. Among the most commonly used antibiotics, cefuroxime came first, followed by ciprofloxacin and amoxicillin in third place. Discussion: To our knowledge, this is the first antimicrobial consumption data from rehabilitation facilities in Germany. Antibiotic consumption in general rehabilitation facilities is less than 10% of the consumption in normal/regular wards of acute care clinics, and the consumption in neurological early rehabilitation was approximately 10% of the consumption in intensive care wards within acute care clinics. Reserve or broad-spectrum antibiotics were rarely or not used at all in the rehabilitation facilities. Despite this overall positive situation, antibiotic stewardship should also be introduced in rehabilitation facilities, possibly with the support of the regional MDRO networks.

[Multidrug Resistant Organisms (MDRO) in Rehabilitation: Prevalence and Risk Factors for MRGN and VRE]. / Multiresistente Erreger (MRE) in der Rehabilitation: Prävalenz und Risikofaktoren für MRGN und VRE.

BACKGROUND: After a first large-scale study on multi-drug resistant organisms (MDRO) in rehabilitation facilities in 2014, the Rhine-Main network on MDRO carried out another investigation in 2019. With regard to the recently published KRINKO recommendations on multidrug resistant enterococci, now vancomycin -resistant enterococci (VRE) and multi-drug resistant gram-negative pathogens (3MRGN and 4MRGN, i. e. gramnegative organisms resistant against 3 resp. 4 groups of antiinfectiva) were investigated. MATERIAL AND METHODS: A total of 16 hospitals took part, including one clinic for early neurological rehabilitation (ENR). Patient participation was voluntary. Rectal swabs were analyzed in a medical-microbiological laboratory (certified according to DIN ISO 15189) using standard methods (including MALDI-TOF-MS and VITEK 2 resistance testing according to EUCAST). By using the standardized questionnaire of the Europe-wide HALT examination (healthcare associated infections in long-term care facilities), patient characteristics (age, gender, hospital, surgical and MDRO medical history, Medical devices, current antibiotic therapy etc.) were collected. RESULTS: 928 patients took part in the study, 895 from general rehabilitation facilities (GR) and 33 from early neurological rehabilitation (ENR). 65% of GR patients (ENR 100%) had been hospitalized in the previous 6 months, 29% (ENR 100%) of the patients had been admitted directly from a hospital, 22% (ENR 64%) had received antibiotic therapy in the last 3 months. Medical devices were rarely used in GR patients with 1% overall, but often in the ENR with 61% urinary catheters and 36% vascular catheters. 2.2% (ENR 33.3%) of GR patients were colonized with VRE and 6.7% (ENR 18.2%) with 3MRGN; one patient exhibited a 4MRGN (ENR 0). DISCUSSION: Compared to our previous study, there were no significant changes in the patient characteristics. The VRE prevalence was low at 3.3%, the prevalence of 3MRGN was higher compared to 2014 (7.1% vs. 3.6%). Risk factors for VRE and 3MRGN colonization (significant increased odds ratio) were: history of hospital treatment and an increased need for care due to restricted mobility, incontinence and disorientation. In addition, previous antibiotic treatment and skin barrier injuries due to Medical devices or wounds were detected as further risk factors for VRE colonization.

Management of patients with multidrug-resistant organisms in rehabilitation facilities. Results of a survey in the Rhine-Main region, Germany, 2019.

Introduction: Multidrug-resistant organisms (MDRO) are a problem in medical facilities, including rehabilitation facilities in Germany. The national recommendations of the Commission for Hospital Hygiene and Infection Prevention (KRINKO) for prevention of and dealing with patients affected by MDRO are obligatory in rehabilitation facilities. A survey on the management of patients with MDRO in rehabilitation facilities in the Rhine-Main area is presented below. Materials and methods: The questions from a recently published survey in 45 rehabilitation facilities in 26 European countries (Doherty et al., 2019) were largely adopted unchanged: the type, size, and organization of the facility, availability of guidelines on MDRO, screening and (estimated) prevalence of MDRO, as well as special hygiene measures or restrictions for patients with MDRO. Results: 22 of the 43 institutions contacted participated (58%). All facilities had specific recommendations on how to deal with MDRO and more than 95% had adequate hygiene staff. The facilities encompassed 4,369 beds, with 3,909 (89%) of them in single-bed rooms, and only a few offered 3-bed rooms. About 20% of patients in general rehabilitation and 100% in early neurological rehabilitation are screened on admission. Six (27%) facilities refused to accept patients with MDRO. 40% of the facilities treated these patients in their own room and/or in a separate area. 27% of the facilities prohibited eating in the dining room and participating in hydrotherapy. Only 6 (27%) of the rehabilitation centers indicated that patients with MDRO are allowed to participate in full rehabilitation programs. Discussion: In accordance with the results of Doherty et al. (2019), there were many restrictions for rehabilitation patients with MDRO, indicating considerable need for improvement. Necessary hygiene recommendations to avoid the transmission of MDRO must not lead to rejection of inpatient rehabilitation or to less intensive rehabilitation.