The isolation of methicillin-resistant Staphylococcus aureus (MRSA) is a predictor for poor prognosis of the elderly patients with bacterial infection

Objective: To evaluate the effect of MRSA isolation on the prognosis of the elderly with bacterial infection in a Japanese geriatric hospital. Design: retrospective cross-sectional study in a clinical setting. Subjects: 227 consecutive patients aged 60 years old or older who underwent bacterial cultures, which revealed positive for bacterium, on the basis of clinical evidence of infection in a geriatric hospital between 1991 and 1993. Main outcome: Death. Results: 103 patients (45.3%) died. The MRSA isolation, males and the patients with hypoalbuminemia were more common among the deceased than the recovered while the patients without any limitations in activities of daily livings and those without any antibiotic use were less common in the former than the latter. Even after controlling other factors, the isolation of MRSA was a significant factor related to death (odds ratio: 1.5, 95% confidence interval: 1.1-2.2). Conclusion: The isolation of MRSA may be an independent factor related to death in the elderly with bacterial infection.