Factors related to health care-associated infections in an adult intensive care unit in Peru

Objective: To identify the factors associated with the prevalence of healthcare--associated infections (HAI) in patients in the Intensive Care Unit (ICU) of the Hospital Es-Salud Tumbes, Peru, during the period 2020-2022.Material and methods: An analytical cross-sectional study was carried out with 348 epidemiological surveillance records.Data were collected through documentary observation and analyzed with descriptive and inferential statistics, applying logistic regression to determine risk factors.Results: Comorbidities increased the risk of HAIs by 48.8 times (ORa: 48.8; 95 % CI: 0.6-1.9;p<0.001).In addition, the use of central venous catheter (ORa: 67.2; p<0.001), urinary catheter (ORa: 20.5; p<0.001), mechanical ventilation (ORa: 83.7; p<0.001) and prolonged hospital stay (ORa: 31.0;p<0.001) were significantly associated with HAIs.No association was found with age, sex or specific microorganisms.Conclusions: Extrinsic factors and prolonged stay are key determinants for HAIs in ICU.Implementing specific protocols for invasive devices and optimizing the length of stay could reduce the risk of HAIs in this context.