Empiric weight-based vancomycin in intensive care unit patients with methicillin-resistant Staphylococcus aureus bacteremia

Abstract Background Previous studies were conducted in all hospitalized patients with methicillin-resistant Staphylococcus aureus (MRSA) bacteremia to determine safety and effectiveness of guideline-recommended, weight-based dosing of vancomycin. in these studies, it was observed that severely ill patients (Pitt bacteremia score ≥ 4 or intensive care unit [iCU] patients) were at an increased risk of mortality and/or nephrotoxicity. Therefore, a subanalysis of the effect of guideline-recommended vancomycin dosing on in-hospital mortality and nephrotoxicity in ICU patients with MRSA bacteremia was conducted. Methods This multicenter, retrospective, cohort study was conducted in a subset of ICU patients from a previous MRSA bacteremia study. Patients were ≥ 18 years old and received ≥ 48 hours of empiric vancomycin from July 1, 2002, to June 30, 2008. The incidence of nephrotoxicity and in-hospital mortality was compared in patients who received guideline-recommended dosing (at least 15 mg/kg per dose) to patients who received non-guideline-recommended dosing of vancomycin. Multivariable generalized linear mixed-effects models were constructed to determine independent risk factors for in-hospital mortality and nephrotoxicity. Results Guideline-recommended dosing was received by 34% of patients (n = 137). Nephrotoxicity occurred in 35% of patients receiving guideline-recommended dosing and 39% receiving non-guideline-recommended dosing ( P = 0.67). In-hospital mortality rate was 24% among patients who received guideline-recommended dosing compared with 31% for non-guideline-recommended dosing ( P = 0.40). Guideline-recommended dosing was not associated with nephrotoxicity (odds ratio: 1.10; 95% confidence interval: 0.43-2.79) or in-hospital mortality (odds ratio: 0.54; 95% confidence interval: 0.22–1.36) in the multivariable analysis. Conclusions Guideline-recommended dosing of vancomycin in ICU patients with MRSA bacteremia is not significantly associated with nephrotoxicity or in-hospital mortality. However, the 7% absolute difference for in-hospital mortality suggests that larger studies are needed.