During the COVID-19 pandemic, nosocomial infections represent a significant challenge to healthcare providers worldwide. The fight against the pandemic may provide practical insights into the future prevention and control of nosocomial infections. COVID-19 nosocomial infection directly influences the patient quality of life and results in additional hospital costs. As a result, reducing nosocomial infection in hospitals remains a challenging but critical endeavor for healthcare personnel.
An example of nosocomial infections is a case of concurrent meningoencephalitis and COVID-19 infection in a one-year-old patient. He was brought to a hospital due to fever, convulsion, and neck stiffness accompanied by unconsciousness later (Akram et al., 2020). A computed tomography scan of the brain revealed significant encephalopathic alteration in both cerebral hemispheres, as well as mild communicating hydrocephalus, indicating meningoencephalitis. He had a COVID infection during his hospitalization, verified by real-time polymerase chain reaction. The physicians acted competently, and the patient was afebrile and aware after ten days in the hospital. The infant was discharged with follow-up instructions on the twenty-fourth day after hospitalization.
This illness is classified as nosocomial because it was discovered during hospitalization. Since isolation measures such as wearing a mask were not implemented during the early stages of the pandemic, virus transmission might have been related to outside population contact. The process of viral dissemination in hospitalized individuals is not fully comprehended. It might be from visitors, nurses, doctors, or other patients in the hospital where the baby was initially admitted. Furthermore, SARS-CoV-2 infection may run asymptomatic while remaining infectious. Infected patients or medical personnel might not be considered and did not comply with particular safety standards. Another reason for the nosocomial infection is associated with patient migration throughout the hospital. This might lead to contamination without a comprehensive screening of patients and caregivers.
Nosocomial infections are becoming increasingly hazardous during the COVID-19 pandemic and can spread quickly from patient to patient, regardless of whether they have symptoms. Training of healthcare personnel, increased use of personal protective equipment, and reduced hospital stay as much as possible by taking advantage of telemedicine could save many lives and reduce the burden on healthcare facilities. This case is important because it shows that in order to prevent nosocomial infections, the diagnosis must be prompt and not dismiss any results.
References
Akram, A., Jewel, M. S., Chowdhury, R., Chowdhury, M. R., & Rahman, S. (2020). A case report of nosocomial infection with SARS CoV-2 in a one-year old meningoencephalitis patient in a tertiary hospital of Bangladesh. Microbes and Infectious Diseases, 1(2), 38-42.