Impact of Results of Methicillin- Resistant Staphylococcus aureus Surveillance Culture of Nasal Specimens on Subsequent Antibiotic Prescribing Patterns

We studied the potential impact of results of methicillin-resistant Staphylococcus aureus (MRSA) surveillance culture of nasal specimens on physicians' vancomycin-prescribing habits. We compared 116 case patients who had positive results with 116 matched control subjects who had negative results. On multivariate analyses, a positive MRSA carrier status remained strongly predictive of vancomycin use within the subsequent 12 weeks.