Screening of Likely MRSA Carriers Could Prevent Hospital Infections: Study

A new study has found that certain types of hospital patients are far more likely to carry colonies of antibiotic-resistant bacteria in their noses than others, placing them at higher risk of contracting virulent hospital infections or passing it on to other patients. 

The study, published online in the medical journal Infection Control and Hospital Epidemiology, was led by researchers from Rhode Island Hospital along with researchers from the Cleveland Clinic, Johns Hopkins Medical Institutions and other medical centers and universities.

The study found that, overall, one in three individuals had colonies of methicillin-resistant Staphylococcus aureus (MRSA) in their nose, but certain groups, such as elderly nursing home residents, HIV patients and those undergoing kidney dialysis, were far more likely to carry the potentially deadly bacteria. Rhode Island Hospital announced the results of the study in a press release earlier this month.

MRSA infections, also known as “superbug” infections, have been steadily growing in the U.S. over the last decade. According to the U.S. Centers for Disease Control and Prevention (CDC), there are more than 2 million hospital infections acquired each year, resulting in about 90,000 deaths annually. Another 1.5 million long term care and nursing home infections occur every year. MRSA, which resists treatment by many antibiotics, has accounted for more than 60 percent of hospital staph infections in recent years.

In the most recent study, researchers took nose cultures from 2,055 patients at 13 different enrollment centers. About 444 of those cultures resulted in the growth of MRSA. Researchers found that 20% of long-term elder care patients carried MRSA colonies, as well as 16% of patients infected with HIV, and 14% and 15% of inpatient and outpatient hemodialysis patients, respectively.

“Hospitals performing active surveillance for MRSA should consider such patient populations for screening cultures,” said Dr. Leonard Mermel, of Rhode Island Hospital. Mermel was the study’s lead author.

Researchers also discovered that a variety of MRSA strains were found across different patient populations, including some strains which had not previously been detected in the United States.

The findings of this latest study follow the release of the results earlier this month of another study conducted by Johns Hopkins that found that 6% of  children admitted to pediatric intensive care units (PICU) carry MRSA as well.