Of the 80,461 methicillin-resistant Staphylococcus aureus infections in the U.S. in 2011, about 14,000 were hospital-onset infections, and 48,353 were healthcare-associated community onset, cultured within three days of a hospital admission or two days of a patient receiving a central venous catheter.
MRSA infections can be difficult to treat due to their antimicrobial resistance. MRSA infections appear on the skin usually, but can spread to the bloodstream and cause sepsis, pneumonia and surgical site infections as well.
Here are 10 stories and studies on the treatment and prevention of MRSA infections that have been covered by Becker's Hospital Review since April, starting with the most recent.
1. Nearly two-thirds of infectious disease specialists who have changed their prescribing practices recently are now using higher doses of vancomycin to treat MRSA, according to a survey of 100 infectious disease specialists.
2. The FDA approved Cubist Pharmaceuticals' new drug, Sivextro, for the treatment of acute bacterial skin infections, including those caused by MRSA, in June.
3. The spread of MRSA has led to a large increase in the number of skin and soft tissue infections, leading the Infectious Disease Society of America to update practice guidelines for the diagnosis and management of the infections.
4. Several organizations, including the Society for Healthcare Epidemiology of America and the Association for Professionals in Infection Control and Epidemiology, developed and released new guidelines for reducing the prevalence of MRSA and prioritizing current prevention efforts.
5. Humans and companion animals like dogs and cats carry a shared population of MRSA bacteria, but it is unlikely owners will get ill from their pets, according to a study published in mBio.
6. The University of California, Davis Children's Hospital opened a Recurrent MRSA Clinic dedicated to the treatment of community-associated recurrent MRSA on May 6.
7. The spread of MRSA can be aided by its presence in households, a study published in Proceedings of the National Academy of Sciences of the United States of America found.
8. A study identified a new strain of vancomycin-resistant MRSA that caused a bloodstream infection in a Brazilian patient, the first time a vancomycin-resistant strain of MRSA has been known to do so.
9. Using genome sequencing, researchers found highly toxic isolates of MRSA have similar genetic structures, allowing them to predict which isolates would be the most toxic and cause more severe diseases, according to a study in Genome Research.
10. Colonization with methicillin-susceptible Staphylococcus aureus does not protect against hospital acquisition of MRSA, research in Infection Control and Hospital Epidemiology found.