Ventilator-Associated Pneumonia (VAP).

Ventilator-associated pneumonia (VAP) is a hospital-acquired (nosocomial) infection that occurs in intensive care units (ICUs). Previous studies have shown that VAP affects 10 percent to 20 percent of patients who are on mechanical ventilators for more than two days, and it is the most common life-threatening nosocomial infection in ICUs. The mortality rate associated with VAP ranges from 24 percent to 50 percent, possibly reaching 76 percent when the pathogenic strain is multidrug-resistant. Furthermore, patients with VAP have a two-fold increased risk of death compared with patients who do not develop this particular infectious disease. VAP has also been associated with a longer stay in the intensive care unit, which in turn results in an increase in hospital expenses. Preventative measures against VAP are therefore necessary to improve healthcare outcomes and to enhance the efficiency of hospital operations.