Therapeutic outcome of elderly and nonelderly patients receiving home intravenous antimicrobial therapy

Home Intravenous Antimicrobial Infusion Therapy: A Viable Option in Older Adults

“…This occurs in part because of concerns that older adults might have more difficulty with the fine manipulations needed to perform the infusions or may be unable to understand the nuances of sterile technique and flushing of the catheter. 7 However, many older adults would prefer to go home than to a skilled care facility. Given the predominance of older patients served by the VA healthcare system and the fact that this system provides total care for most of its patients, this study was in a unique position to compare the effectiveness and safety of home IV antimicrobials in a large group of older adults with that in a younger cohort.…”

“…Aminoglycosides were used infrequently ( Table 3). Older pa- (5) .57 Endocarditis 7 (7) 8 (7) .99 Genitourinary infection 6 (6) 1 (1) .08 Respiratory tract infection 5 (5) 7 (6) .98 Abdominal abscess 1 (1) 8 (7) .06 Other w 2 (2) 5 (4) .58…”

“…Venous access device complications were frequent but rarely serious. The most common event was occlusion of a PICC line, which occurred at a rate of 3.0 per 1,000 home IV antimicrobials days in older patients and 2.3 per 1,000 home IV antimicrobials days in younger patients .03 Piperacillin-tazobactam 6 (6) 8 (7) .99 Ampicillin-sulbactam 4 (4) 13 (11) .08 Aminoglycosides 2 (2) 9 (7) .10 Other agents w 7 (7) 18 (15) .08 Ã Some courses involved treatment with more than one agent. w Clindamycin, penicillin, nafcillin, ampicillin, ticarcillin-clavulanic acid, imipenem, meropenem, and amphotericin B.…”

“…[1][2][3][4][5][6] Few studies have specifically addressed concerns unique to the older adult who receives home IV antimicrobials. 7 One report noted that 72% of older adults were rejected as candidates for home IV antimicrobials, compared with a rejection rate of 49% for patients of all ages. 1 Concern exists that older adults, who often have more comorbid conditions and functional impairment, might be at risk for more adverse events while administering home IV antimicrobials.…”

Safety and efficacy of home intravenous antimicrobial infusion therapy in older patients: a comparative study with younger patients

“…There are seldom papers specifically devoted to intravenous antimicrobial infusion therapy in the elderly population (15,16). This fact prompted the present study whose main objectives are to investigate the safety and efficacy of home intravenous antimicrobial infusion therapy in elderly patients.…”