Can J Infect Dis Med
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Can J Infect Dis Med · Jul 2015
Usefulness of previous methicillin-resistant Staphylococcus aureus screening results in guiding empirical therapy for S aureus bacteremia.
Staphylococcus aureus bacteremia (SAB) is an important infection. Methicillin-resistant S aureus (MRSA) screening is performed on hospitalized patients for infection control purposes. ⋯ A negative prior MRSA screening swab cannot reliably rule out MRSA bacteremia and should not be used to guide empirical antibiotic therapy for SAB. A positive prior MRSA screening swab greatly increases likelihood of MRSA, necessitating MRSA coverage in empirical antibiotic therapy for SAB.