title: Clinical and epidemiological findings in mechanically-ventilated patients with methicillin-resistant Staphylococcus aureus pneumonia.
abstract: Over the 5-year period from 1990 to 1994, a prospective cohort study was conducted to define the clinical and epidemiological characteristics of ventilator-associated methicillin-resistant Staphylococcus aureus (MRSA) pneumonia acquired during a large-scale outbreak of MRSA infection. Of 2411 mechanically ventilated patients, 347 (14.4%) acquired MRSA, 220 (63.4%) had MRSA positive respiratory tract samples and 41 (18.6%) developed ventilator-associated MRSA pneumonia. The overall attack rate for ventilator-associated MRSA pneumonia was 1.56 episodes/1000 ventilator days, but annual attack rates varied according to the trend of the outbreak (range 4.9-0.2). In comparison with methicillin-sensitive Staphylococcus aureus (MSSA), which was implicated in 98 episodes of ventilator-associated pneumonia, MRSA caused exclusively late-onset ventilator-associated pneumonia, while MSSA caused both early-onset [55 of 98 (56.1%) episodes] and late-onset [43 of 98 (43.8%) episodes] ventilator-associated pneumonia. Logistic regression analysis of all patients with Staphylococcus aureus pneumonia revealed intubation for more than 3 days (odds ratio (OR),1.11; confidence interval (CI):1.03-1.18) and prior bronchoscopy (OR,5.8; CI,1.85-18.19) to be independent variables associated with MRSA pneumonia. The results indicate that MRSA ventilator-associated pneumonia is a frequent complication in intensive care patients, manifesting itself as late-onset pneumonia in patients who have been intubated for prolonged periods and/or have often undergoing previous bronchoscopy.
authors.affiliation: Department of Infectious Diseases, Hospital de Bellvitge, University of Barcelona, Spain.
authors.forename: M
authors.initials: M
authors.lastname: Pujol
authors.forename: X
authors.initials: X
authors.lastname: Corbella
authors.forename: C
authors.initials: C
authors.lastname: Peña
authors.forename: R
authors.initials: R
authors.lastname: Pallares
authors.forename: J
authors.initials: J
authors.lastname: Dorca
authors.forename: R
authors.initials: R
authors.lastname: Verdaguer
authors.forename: A
authors.initials: A
authors.lastname: Diaz-Prieto
authors.forename: J
authors.initials: J
authors.lastname: Ariza
authors.forename: F
authors.initials: F
authors.lastname: Gudiol
mesh_terms: D000328:Adult; D000900:Anti-Bacterial Agents / Q000627:therapeutic use; D001999:Bronchoscopy; D003428:Cross Infection / Q000188:drug therapy / Q000453:epidemiology* / Q000382:microbiology; D004196:Disease Outbreaks; D005260:Female; D006801:Humans; D007362:Intensive Care Units; D007440:Intubation; D008297:Male; D016106:Methicillin Resistance; D008875:Middle Aged; D011023:Pneumonia, Staphylococcal / Q000188:drug therapy / Q000453:epidemiology* / Q000382:microbiology; D011446:Prospective Studies; D012044:Regression Analysis; D012121:Respiration, Artificial; D013030:Spain / Q000453:epidemiology; D013211:Staphylococcus aureus / Q000187:drug effects* / Q000302:isolation & purification; D013997:Time Factors
chemical_list: D000900:Anti-Bacterial Agents