Background: The objective of this investigation was to measure the prevalence of hospital acquired infections in Norway in 1999 and 2000.
Material and methods: The results are based on prevalence reports sent to the Norwegian Institute of Public Health from 41 hospitals in 1999 and 45 in 2000, out of a total of 80 somatic hospitals. With the exception of two hospitals, all registered the four most common hospital infections: urinary tract infection, respiratory tract infection, surgical site infection, and septicaemia. In 1999, 35,612 patients were included; in 2000 35,712.
Results: The prevalence of the four most common hospital infections was 5.4% in 1999 and 5.1% in 2000. Urinary tract infections accounted for about 36.5% of all infections during both years.
Interpretation: About one in every 20 patients has at any given time a hospital infection. This report identifies the distribution of hospital infections and where to initiate further preventive measures.