Objectives: This study was conducted to investigate the correlation between antibiotic consumption and the incidence of health-care-associated infections (HCAIs) caused by methicillin-resistant Staphylococcus aureus (MRSA) (HCAI-MRSA) and vancomycin-resistant enterococci (VREs) (HCAI-VREs) at a university hospital in Taiwan during the period from 2000 to 2010.
Methods: Data on annual patient-days and annual consumption (defined daily dose/1000 patient-days) of glycopeptides (vancomycin and teicoplanin), linezolid, fusidic acid, tigecycline, and daptomycin were analyzed. Yearly aggregated data on the number of nonduplicate clinical MRSA and VRE isolates causing HCAI were collected.
Results: Overall, the consumption of teicoplanin and linezolid significantly increased during the study period. A significant decrease in the incidence of HCAI-MRSA and a significant increase in the incidence of HCAI-VRE were found during the study period. A significant correlation was found between the increased use of teicoplanin and linezolid and the decreased incidence of HCAI-MRSA. By contrast, positive correlations were found between the consumption of teicoplanin and tigecycline and the incidence of HCAI-VRE.
Conclusion: This study identified various correlations between the consumption of antibiotics and the incidence of HCAI-MRSA and HCAI-VRE. Strict implementation of infection-control guidelines and reinforcement of administering appropriate antibiotic agents would be helpful in decreasing the incidence of MRSA and VRE in hospitals.
Keywords: Antimicrobial resistance; Antimicrobial use; Health-care-associated infection; Methicillin-resistant Staphylococcus aureus; Vancomycin-resistant enterococci.
Copyright © 2013. Published by Elsevier B.V.