Bacterial infection spreads to NJ hospital as COVID-19 strikes: CDC

NEW JERSEY – A new report from the CDC indicates that a hospital in New Jersey faced a potentially disturbing bacterial infection as the COVID-19 crisis struck this year.

On May 28, an unidentified New Jersey hospital reported a cluster of carbapenem-resistant Acinetobacter baumannii, or CRAB, infections during an inpatient flare-up for the coronavirus, according to a released Centers for Disease Control Prevention report. Tuesday.

It is not known why the CDC report did not identify the hospital. Efforts to get comment from the agency failed Tuesday night.

Acinetobacter baumannii can cause infections of the blood, urinary tract and lungs or sores in other parts of the body. It can also “colonize” or live in a patient without causing infections or symptoms, especially in respiratory secretions or open wounds, according to the CDC.

After the May 28 discovery, the unidentified hospital and the New Jersey Department of Health investigated and identified 34 patients with multidrug-resistant CRAB infections during the February-July period, including 21 admitted in two intensive care units dedicated to the care of patients with COVID-19, according to the report.

The report noted that in March, the hospital first faced an increase in hospitalizations related to COVID-19 which led to shortages of personnel, personal protective equipment or PPE and medical equipment, leading to changes in conventional infection prevention and control practices.

The report states that the unidentified hospital is an “urban acute care” facility in New Jersey with approximately 500 beds. From March to August, the hospital admitted around 850 patients with COVID-19. The number of cases peaked on April 9, with 36 new hospitalizations and 61% of the hospitalized population with a confirmed or suspected diagnosis of COVID-19, according to the report.

In June, the hospital reported fewer cases of CRAB associated with the hospital, coinciding with a sharp decrease in hospitalizations related to COVID-19. This trend continued in July. In August, no cases of CRAB associated with the hospital were reported, according to the report.