A new study, released late last month, tested
three different strategies for preventing methicillin-resistant Staphylococcus
aureus, or MRSA. Researchers from the University of California, Irvine, Harvard
Pilgrim Health Care Institute, Hospital Corporation of America (HCA), and the
Centers for Disease Control and Prevention (CDC), all participated in the study. They compared providing routine care to all patients, providing germ-killing soap and
ointment only to patients with MRSA, and using germ-killing soap and ointment on
all ICU patients.
The study found that with routine care, neither
the presence or MRSA or other bloodstream infections were significantly
reduced. Method two, bathing and treating only patients who were found to carry
MRSA, reduced infections by 23 percent. The best treatment, however, was
universal bathing and treatment of all ICU patients, which reduced infections
by 44 percent.
A total of 74 adult ICUs and
74,256 patients were part of the study, making it the largest study on this
topic, CDC officials said. The study, and a synopsis, can be found on the CDC
website here.
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