RT Journal Article
T1 A Markov chain model to investigate the spread of antibiotic-resistant bacteria in hospitals
A1 Chalub, Fabio A.C.C.
A1 Gómez-Corral, Antonio
A1 López-García, Martín
A1 Palacios-Rodríguez, Fátima
AB This paper proposes a Markov chain model to describe the spread of a single bacterial species in a hospital ward where patients may be free of bacteria or may carry bacterial strains that are either sensitive or resistant to antimicrobial agents. The aim is to determine the probability law of the exact reproduction number Rexact,0 which is here defined as the random number of secondary infections generated by those patients who are accommodated in a predetermined bed before a patient who is free of bacteria is accommodated in this bed for the first time. Specifically, we decompose the exact reproduction number Rexact,0 into two contributions allowing us to distinguish between infections due to the sensitive and the resistant bacterial strains. Our methodology is mainly based on structured Markov chains and the use of related matrix-analytic methods.
YR 2023
FD 2023-05-24
LK https://hdl.handle.net/20.500.14352/72422
UL https://hdl.handle.net/20.500.14352/72422
LA eng
NO Ministerio de Ciencia e Innovación
NO Fundação para a Ciência e a Tecnologia (Portugal)
DS Docta Complutense
RD 3 abr 2025