A study published in Clinical Infectious Diseases examined methicillin-resistant Staphylococcus aureus infections that occurred before and after discharge using data from the Department of Veterans Affairs' MRSA surveillance program.
Researchers created a dataset of 985,626 first admissions from January 2008 through December 2015 who underwent MRSA surveillance tests. They studied MRSA infections that occurred prior to discharge and at 30, 90, 180 and 365 days after discharge.
The study shows the MRSA infection rate across the pre- and postdischarge period among those who were not directly admitted into the intensive care unit was 5.5 percent in importers (those who were colonized on admission) and 7 percent in acquirers (those who acquired MRSA during their stay). Among those directly admitted to the ICU, the MRSA infection rate was 11.4 percent in importers and 11.7 percent in acquirers.
The predischarge hazard ratio for MRSA infection was 29.6 for importers and 28.8 for acquirers compared to those not colonized.
Additionally, 63.9 percent of all MRSA pre-and postdischarge infections among importers and 61.2 percent among acquirers occurred within 180 days after discharge.
"A substantial proportion of MRSA infections occur after discharge from the hospital," study authors concluded.