Impact of contact isolation precautions on multi-drug resistant acinetobacter baumannii in the pediatric intensive care unit

The emergence and dissemination of multidrug-resistant organisms (MDROs), including Acinetobacter baumannii has caused continued concern. This organism is capable of surviving on dry surfaces for 4 months1 and has been linked to prolonged colonization.2 The empiric use of contact (barrier) precautions in the management of A. baumannii as a specific intervention3,4 and as a bundle component5 has been studied in both outbreak and non-outbreak settings. However, the optimal isolation precautions and required duration of such precautions remain unresolved, especially in pediatric intensive care units (PICUs). We analyzed the isolation precautions for A. baumannii in a tertiary PICU and their effectiveness in a non-outbreak setting over 6 years.