Both targeted decolonization and universal decolonization of patients in intensive care units (ICUs) are candidate strategies to prevent health care–associated infections, particularly those caused by methicillin-resistant Staphylococcus aureus (MRSA).
Methods
We conducted a pragmatic, cluster-randomized trial. Hospitals were randomly assigned to one of three strategies, with all adult ICUs in a given hospital assigned to the same strategy. Group 1 implemented MRSA screening and isolation; group 2, targeted decolonization (i.e., screening, isolation, and decolonization of MRSA carriers); and group 3, universal decolonization (i.e., no screening, and decolonization of all patients). Proportional-hazards models were used to assess differences in infection reductions across the study groups, with clustering according to hospital.
MRSA lives in the sinuses of an infected person even if it isn't doing anything at the moment. It is said to colonize a person thus. "Decolonization" seems to mean "eradicating the MRSA colony in a person".
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MRSA lives in the sinuses of an infected person even if it isn't doing anything at the moment. It is said to colonize a person thus. "Decolonization" seems to mean "eradicating the MRSA colony in a person". "Targeted" means treating only patients with proven MRSA colonies, and "universal" means treating everybody who comes through the ICU, regardless.