Incidence of bloodstream infection after open-heart surgery with delayed sternal closure among children with congenital heart disease: a single-center retrospective study

The incidence of nosocomial BSIs was 11.8% (21 of 178 infants). Among the positive cultures, Klebsiella was the most frequent pathogen, accounting for 47.6% of isolates (10 out of 21). Among the positive cultures, Klebsiella was the most frequent pathogen, accounting for 10 (47.6%) of isolates. Multivariable logistic regression analysis revealed that younger age (adjusted OR 0.97 per day; 95% CI 0.94-0.99; P = 0.03) and longer cardiopulmonary bypass (CPB) duration (adjusted OR 1.008 per minute; 95% CI 1.000-1.016; P = 0.04) were independently associated with the occurrence of BSI. These findings suggest that younger age and prolonged cardiopulmonary bypass duration are independent risk factors for the development of BSIs bloodstream infections in pediatric patients undergoing open-heart surgery with DSC. Further research is warranted to validate these findings and to identify effective infection prevention strategies for this high-risk population.