Although decolonization is an important part of managing methicillin-resistant Staphylococcus aureus infections, the process takes longer than the average hospital length of stay. To prevent incomplete decolonization, researchers have tested a new program that extends to outpatient and home settings.
Their study was published in the journal Antimicrobial Resistance and Infection Control. It focuses on the integrated MRSA management model, which continues decolonization efforts beyond discharge to long-term care facilities or to patients' homes. The IMM protocol uses polyhexanide-based products to combat MRSA.
Highlighted below are three findings from the study.
1. The overall decolonization rate was much higher (47 percent) in the IMM patient group than in the control group (12 percent).
2. The post-discharge treatment was as effective as treatment completed during hospitalization, with microbiologically confirmed decolonization rates of 55 percent for the IMM group and 43 percent for the control group.
3. Among all patients with skin wounds or entry sites who finished the complete decolonization protocol regardless of their location, decolonization was successful 50 percent of the time when skin alterations were MRSA-negative at the baseline, compared to 22 percent of the time for patients with skin alterations that were MRSA-positive at the baseline.
"IMM is a promising concept to improve decolonization rates of MRSA-carriers for patients who leave the hospital before decolonization is completed," the study authors concluded.
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