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USA300 MRSA may not be linked to increased morbidity, mortality
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Mortality associated with the USA300 strain of methicillin-resistant Staphylococcus aureus may be due to underlying factors and not the infection itself, according to findings of a recent study.
The findings were presented at the Infectious Diseases Society of America’s recent meeting in Philadelphia by Fernanda Lessa, MD, MPH, of the Surveillance Branch of the Division of Healthcare Quality Promotion at CDC.
“Using two groups of patients, one group with community-onset invasive pneumonia and the other with bloodstream infections associated with the use of intravenous catheters, we compared MRSA infection due to USA300 vs. infections due to USA100,” Lessa said.
Lessa said that USA300 patients tended to be younger and healthier than those with USA100. She said that this may have decreased their risk for death.
The population-based study was conducted in six U.S. metropolitan areas from 2005 to 2007.
There were 283 patients in the bloodstream infection group and 109 patients in the pneumonia cohort.
Results indicated that IV drug users, blacks, individuals younger than 45 and patients who were healthier at admission were more likely to have USA300.
Multivariate analysis indicated that predictors of death associated with MRSA among patients with bloodstream infections included a Charles Index score ≥ 1 (OR=5.2, P=.01), age >75 (OR=2.8, P=.02), a stay in the ICU before MRSA culture (OR=5.4, P=.001), admission to the ICU after MRSA culture (OR=4.8, P=.01) and MRSA complications (OR=3.2, P=.009). In the pneumonia cohort, predictors of MRSA-associated mortality included complicated MRSA presentation (OR=4.3, P=.02). – by Rob Volansky