Infection rates at Buffalo General Hospital for heart surgery showed good and bad results in 2009, according to a state Health Department report.

The rate for infections at the site of the incision in the chest -- 4.1 per 100 procedures -- was significantly higher than the state average of 2.2 percent, but down from 5 percent in 2008.

But the rate for the site where donor blood vessels are harvested for the surgery declined significantly, from 3.8 percent in 2008 to 0.8 percent in 2009.

The declines reflect steps Kaleida Health has taken across its hospital system to prevent hospital-acquired infections, said Mary Pruski, a vice president and chief quality and patient safety officer.

She said more current unpublished data shows continued improvement for Buffalo General's surgical site infection rate.

"We are seeing a positive trend that is heading in the right direction," she said.

The report lists hospital-acquired infection rates, by hospital, for surgical site infections related to colon, cardiac bypass and hip replacement surgeries. It also lists central line infections in 10 types of intensive care units, including coronary, medical and neonatal.

The results show hospitals are making progress in reducing infections, according to state officials. For instance, average infection rates since 2007 dropped 18 percent for central line-associated bloodstream infections and 14 percent for cardiac bypass surgery.

"The continued progress in making hospital stays safer for all New Yorkers is encouraging," said Arthur A. Levin, a member of the state Technical Advisory Workgroup on Hospital-Acquired Infections and director of the Center for Medical Consumers, a nonprofit organization focused on quality.

A central line is a tube into a major vein that allows doctors to administer medication or monitor a condition. An infection associated with these lines may flow into the bloodstream and damage other organs.

Buffalo General was the only hospital in the region with a central line infection rate significantly worse than the state average. The 2009 rate of 6.7 percent for its surgical ICU was worse than the state average of 2.1 percent and a dramatic change from 2008, when the unit posted a rate of 0.8 percent, which was significantly better than the state average.

Pruski attributed the change mainly to a downsizing of the ICU, with chronic ventilator and heart surgery patients moved to their own specialized units rather than mixing with other surgical patients.

Most hospital infection rates in Western New York were statistically close to the state average. The other exceptions were:

* Kenmore Mercy, which had a lower than average hip surgery infection rate of 0.7 percent and showed improvement from 2008's higher than average rate of 3 percent.

* Mercy, which had a higher than average colon surgery site infection rate, 10.5, percent compared with 4.8 percent.

* Mount St. Mary's, which improved its colon surgery site infection rate from 12.8 percent in 2008 to 2.8 percent.

The state in 2005 passed a law requiring hospitals to disclose infection rates. This is the second year the results have been shared with the public.

"The [report] shows that mandatory disclosure saves lives by making hospitals work harder to prevent infections," Betsy McCaughey, founder of the Committee to Reduce Infection Deaths and a former lieutenant governor, said in a statement.

hdavis@buffnews.comnull