About one in 25 hospital patients in the U.S. pick up an infection during their care, according to a new estimate from the Centers for Disease Control and Prevention.

The report, based on a survey conducted in 183 hospitals in 10 states in 2011, updates a previous estimate of 1.7 million infections a year, according to an article on the USA Today website. 

That estimate, issued in 2007, was based on different study methods, so the numbers can't be directly compared, CDC officials said.

"But the trend looks like there are fewer infections," than in the past, said Michael Bell, deputy director of the CDC's division of health care quality promotion. "It makes sense because of all the efforts we've made to reduce infections."

The report, based on data healthcare facilities must report to the CDC, also showed limited progress in controlling the diarrhea-causing bacterium Clostridium difficile. C. diff spores can linger on bed rails, linens, medical equipment and hands, allowing the infection to spread through hospitals, person to person. It most often takes hold in people taking antibiotics, the article said.

"We are seeing 250,000 cases and 14,000 deaths each year from C. diff and those deaths should really be preventable," Bell said. "There's a sense of urgency."

Read the article.