Related Experiment Video
Updated: May 3, 2026
The Polyvinyl Alcohol Sponge Model Implantation
Published on: April 18, 2012
Outpatient parenteral antimicrobial therapy at large Veterans Administration medical center
Objectives:
To evaluate our outpatient parenteral antimicrobial therapy (OPAT) program to determine its impact on infection management in a facility notable for high patient comorbidity and a large catchment area that includes most of Southern California.
Study Design:
Retrospective chart review.
Methods:
We reviewed all episodes of patients receiving OPAT from our institution from 2006 through 2009 for patient utilization characteristics and assessment of complications.
Results:
A total of 333 patients received 393 courses of OPAT for a mean of 21.1 days. Diabetes mellitus (53.5%), psychiatric disease (39%), and chronic kidney disease (31%) were common; more than half the patients lived more than 20 miles from our medical center. Osteomyelitis (39.7%) and bacteremia (19.3%) accounted for the majority of OPAT indications. Staphylococcus aureus (36.4%) was the most frequent infecting organism, and vancomycin (37.4%) was the most frequently prescribed medication. Complications including hospital readmission, adverse drug reactions, or line-related complications were noted in 96 of 393 (24.4%) episodes, but most were minor, reversible, or not directly related to the OPAT given. Serious line-related complications that required hospital readmission were noted in only 6 (1.5%) episodes. OPAT was completed as planned in 313 (79.6%) episodes; end-stage renal disease was associated with OPAT noncompletion in multivariable analysis (odds ratio = 2.20, P = .047). We estimated that OPAT saved our medical center $4 million per year.
Conclusions:
Despite our patients' high level of comorbidity and our facility's large catchment area, we were able to deliver OPAT successfully and safely with significant cost savings.
Related Concept Videos
01:27Parentral Nutrition: Centeral and Peripheral Parental Nutrition
PN can be administered through two primary routes:
1. Central Parenteral Nutrition (CPN):
CPN involves delivering a high concentration of nutrients through a large vein. This is typically achieved using a Peripherally Inserted Central Catheter (PICC) or,...
01:24Automated Microbial Diagnostics
01:28Acute Pyelonephritis II: Diagnostic Studies and Management
01:25Routes of Drug Administration: Parenteral
The intravenous route (IV) of drug administration can be further categorized into two types. The bolus injection administers the entire dose rapidly, while an intravenous infusion slowly delivers smaller doses steadily.
The IV route is often...
01:17Urinary Tract Infection IV: Nursing Management
01:29Venous Thrombosis III: Interprofessional Care