Healthcare-associated infections in a paediatric haematology/oncology unit in Morocco

Objective: HAI cause considerable morbidity and mortality and are associated with prolonged hospital stay and increased health care costs. To describe the incidence of HAI in paediatric cancer patients as the first step towards improving infection control policies. Methods: A prospective surveillance study was performed in the Casablanca university hospital paediatric haematology/oncology unit over an 8-month period from January to August 2011. Data including extrinsic risk factors associated with HAI were recorded. Results: The incidence of HAI was 28 per 1000 patient-days. The median age was 9.6 years and the most frequent diagnosis was acute myeloid leukaemia (32%). Neutropenia at diagnosis was significantly correlated with the risk of HAI. 55.7% of HAIs were nosocomial fever of unknown origin. Gram-negative bacteria were the main pathogens (60%), gram-positive cocci were responsible for 26% of HAI and Candida for 14% of HAI. The length of hospital stay for patients with and without infection were 16.5 and 5 days, respectively (P < 0.001). Six of the 11 deaths were related to HAI. Conclusion: These findings suggest the need to evaluate infection control measures in order to reduce morbidity and mortality in paediatric haematology/oncology units.