Point prevalence surveys of healthcare-associated infections (HAI) and antimicrobial use in the European Union and European Economic Area (EU/EEA) from 2016 to 2017 included 310,755 patients from 1,209 acute care hospitals (ACH) in 28 countries and 117,138 residents from 2,221 long-term care facilities (LTCF) in 23 countries. After national validation, we estimated that 6.5% (cumulative 95% confidence interval (cCI): 5.4–7.8%) patients in ACH and 3.9% (95% cCI: 2.4–6.0%) residents in LTCF had at least one HAI (country-weighted prevalence). On any given day, 98,166 patients (95% cCI: 81,022–117,484) in ACH and 129,940 (95% cCI: 79,570–197,625) residents in LTCF had an HAI. HAI episodes per year were estimated at 8.9 million (95% cCI: 4.6–15.6 million), including 4.5 million (95% cCI: 2.6–7.6 million) in ACH and 4.4 million (95% cCI: 2.0–8.0 million) in LTCF; 3.8 million (95% cCI: 3.1–4.5 million) patients acquired an HAI each year in ACH. Antimicrobial resistance (AMR) to selected AMR markers was 31.6% in ACH and 28.0% in LTCF. Our study confirmed a high annual number of HAI in healthcare facilities in the EU/EEA and indicated that AMR in HAI in LTCF may have reached the same level as in ACH.

Health care-associated infections (HAI) are a major public health problem with a significant impact on morbidity, mortality and quality of life. They represent also an important economic burden to health systems worldwide. However, a large proportion of HAI are preventable through effective infection prevention and control (IPC) measures. Improvements in IPC at the national and facility level are critical for the successful containment of antimicrobial resistance and the prevention of HAI, including outbreaks of highly transmissible diseases through high quality care within the context of universal health coverage. Given the limited availability of IPC evidence-based guidance and standards, the World Health Organization (WHO) decided to prioritize the development of global recommendations on the core components of effective IPC programmes both at the national and acute health care facility level, based on systematic literature reviews and expert consensus. The aim of the guideline development process was to identify the evidence and evaluate its quality, consider patient values and preferences, resource implications, and the feasibility and acceptability of the recommendations. As a result, 11 recommendations and three good practice statements are presented here, including a summary of the supporting evidence, and form the substance of a new WHO IPC guideline.Electronic supplementary materialThe online version of this article (doi:10.1186/s13756-016-0149-9) contains supplementary material, which is available to authorized users.

This retrospective review of reported surgical site infection (SSI) rates in Europe was undertaken to obtain an estimated scale of the problem and the associated economic burden. Preliminary literature searches revealed incomplete datasets when applying the National Nosocomial Infection Surveillance System criteria. Following an expanded literature search, studies were selected according to the number of parameters reported, from those identified as critical for accurate determination of SSI rates. Forty-eight studies were analysed. None of the reviewed studies recorded all the data necessary to enable a comparative assessment of the SSI rate to be undertaken. The estimated range from selected studies analysed varied widely from 1.5-20% - a consequence of inconsistencies in data collection methods, surveillance criteria and wide variations in the surgical procedures investigated - often unspecified. SSIs contribute greatly to the economic costs of surgical procedures - estimated range: 1.47-19.1 billion Euro dollars. The analysis suggests that the true rate of SSIs, currently unknown, is likely to have been previously under-reported. Consequently, the associated economic burden is also likely to be underestimated. A significant improvement in study design, data collection, analysis and reporting will be necessary to ensure that SSI baseline rates are more accurately assessed to enable the evaluation of future cost-effective measures.

Antimicrobial agents used to treat infections are life-saving. Overuse may result in more frequent adverse effects and emergence of multidrug-resistant microorganisms. In 2016–17, we performed the second point-prevalence survey (PPS) of healthcare-associated infections (HAIs) and antimicrobial use in European acute care hospitals. We included 1,209 hospitals and 310,755 patients in 28 of 31 European Union/European Economic Area (EU/EEA) countries. The weighted prevalence of antimicrobial use in the EU/EEA was 30.5% (95% CI: 29.2–31.9%). The most common indication for prescribing antimicrobials was treatment of a community-acquired infection, followed by treatment of HAI and surgical prophylaxis. Over half (54.2%) of antimicrobials for surgical prophylaxis were prescribed for more than 1 day. The most common infections treated by antimicrobials were respiratory tract infections and the most commonly prescribed antimicrobial agents were penicillins with beta-lactamase inhibitors. There was wide variation of patients on antimicrobials, in the selection of antimicrobial agents and in antimicrobial stewardship resources and activities across the participating countries. The results of the PPS provide detailed information on antimicrobial use in European acute care hospitals, enable comparisons between countries and hospitals, and highlight key areas for national and European action that will support efforts towards prudent use of antimicrobials.