Central line-associated bloodstream infections (CLABSI) increase morbidity, mortality, and healthcare costs of hospitalized patients, despite being largely preventable. While evidence-based guidelines for preventing CLABSI are well-established, the implementation of these measures remain suboptimal, say Obama, et al. (2025) who add that digitalization presents a promising approach to improve guideline adherence, streamline implementation processes, and ultimately reduce CLABSI rates.

A systematic search yielded 263 articles, of which six studies were included. Digitalized interventions were predominantly designed for use by nurses in tertiary-level hospitals (n = 6), primarily in intensive care units (n = 5) and targeted pediatric patient populations (n = 5). These measures were often implemented as part of multimodal strategies. The digital interventions included hospital dashboards (n = 2), mobile applications (n = 2), automatic notifications of catheter days (n = 1), and e-learning modules with electronic reminders (n = 1). The most common study design was quasi-experimental without an external control group. All included studies reported a reduction in CLABSI rates, ranging from 21 to 73%. Healthcare workers generally perceived these digital interventions positively.

Digitalized interventions for CLABSI prevention seem to be effective in reducing infection rates, likely because of increasing compliance to established guidelines for CLABSI prevention, conclude the authors.

Reference: Obama BM, et al. Digitalized measures for the prevention of central line-associated bloodstream infections: a scoping review. Antimicrobial Resistance & Infection Control. Volume 14, article number 45 (2025)