Comparative risk of bloodstream infection in hospitalized patients receiving intravenous medication by open, point-of-care, or closed delivery systems

Purpose The impact of i.v. drug delivery via point-of-care (POC)-activated and closed systems versus traditional manual admixture systems on the risk of hospital-acquired bloodstream infection (BSI) is examined. Methods Using data from a proprietary hospital database, a retrospective observational cohort study of patients receiving one or more i.v. drug administrations via POC-activated or closed systems during a three-year period (2007–09) was conducted. Cases of hospital-acquired BSI were identified using diagnosis codes and billing charges for blood cultures and antibiotic use. The risk of BSI in patients with exposure to POC-activated systems, closed systems, or both relative to that of patients exposed to open systems was estimated by odds ratios (ORs) calculated by multivariate logistic regression analysis. Results The evaluated data indicated that of the 4,073,864 patients included in the study cohort, 0.5% ( n = 20,251) experienced hospital-acquired BSI. After adjusting for selected confounding variables, the use of POC-activated systems was associated with a 16% reduction in BSI risk relative to the use of open systems (OR, 0.84; 95% confidence interval [CI], 0.76–0.93), and the use of closed systems correlated with a 12% risk reduction (OR, 0.88; 95% CI, 0.82–0.96). Patients who received i.v. drugs via both POC-activated and closed systems appeared to derive the greatest relative risk reduction benefit (OR, 0.12; 95% CI, 0.06–0.23). Conclusion Use of POC-activated and closed systems for i.v. drug delivery was associated with a significantly reduced risk of hospital-acquired BSI compared with exclusive use of open systems in a large population of hospitalized patients.