[Prevalence of hospital infections in Norwegian somatic hospitals]

A nation-wide survey of the prevalence of hospital-acquired infections was carried out on 25 April 1991. The purpose of the study was to assess the size of the problem, to find out in which medical disciplines they occur and what types of infections dominate, and to motivate hospital personnel for training in infection control. The survey included 77 somatic hospitals with a total of 15,160 patients. 4,418 patients had undergone surgery during their stay in hospital. 1,063 were newborns. On the day of the survey 976 clinically manifest infections were recorded. This gave a total prevalence rate of 6.4%. At county level the prevalence rates varied from 3.8 to 8.9%. The prevalence rate for surgical wound infections was 3.7%. Urinary tract infections accounted for 33.6% of the total infections, followed by lower respiratory tract infections (16.8%), and surgical wound infections (16.6%). The study indicates in which medical disciplines the problems of infection are most serious, and where the control should be strengthened. It also provides a good basis for further detailed studies of hospital-acquired infections.