In this week's episode, Martin talks to Dr Michael Klompas, Infectious Disease physician, Hospital Epidemiologist, and Professor of Population Medicine at Harvard Medical School and Brigham and Women's Hospital, Boston, USA. We discuss the complexities of undertaking surveillance of Ventilator-associated pneumonia (VAP) and the USA approach to looking at the wider issue of Ventilator-associated Events (VAE) that removes subjectivity from the surveillance of these important complications. We also discuss the recent SHEA/IDSA/APIC/AMA prevention strategies paper that is the latest state of the art guidance on VAP/VAE prevention.

Useful reading here:

1. Klompas M, et al. Strategies to prevent ventilator-associated pneumonia, ventilator-associated events, and nonventilator hospital-acquired pneumonia in acute-care hospitals: 2022 Update. Infect Control Hosp Epidemiol. 2022;43(6):687-713.  https://doi.org/10.1017/ice.2022.88

2. Weinberger JF, et al. Changes in the epidemiology of ventilator-associated events over the course of the coronavirus disease 2019 (COVID-19) pandemic. Infect Control Hosp Epidemiol. 2021:1-3. https://doi.org/10.1017/ice.2021.459

3. Klompas M. Ventilator-Associated Events: What They Are and What They Are Not. Respir Care. 2019;64(8):953-961.  https://doi.org/10.4187/respcare.07059

4. Klompas M. Ventilator-associated conditions versus ventilator-associated pneumonia: different by design. Curr Infect Dis Rep. 2014;16(10):430.  https://doi.org/10.1007/s11908-014-0430-0

5. Klompas M, et al. Risk of misleading ventilator-associated pneumonia rates with use of standard clinical and microbiological criteria. Clin Infect Dis. 2008;46(9):1443-1446.  https://doi.org/10.1086/587103