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The rising prevalence of methicillin-resistant Staphylococcus aureus (MRSA) and the limitations of vancomycin have led to increased use of alternative antibiotics such as tigecycline, daptomycin, and linezolid — and concern about resistance to these newer agents. Now, researchers describe an outbreak of infections caused by linezolid-resistant MRSA (LMRSA) at a tertiary care hospital in Spain.
LMRSA was identified in a blood sample from a patient in the hospital's neurotrauma intensive care unit (ICU) on April 13, 2008. By June 26, the pathogen had been detected in samples from 14 additional patients (11 in this ICU or another in the same hospital; and 3 in other wards, 2 of whom had a previous ICU stay). Among the 12 ICU patients, 3 had bac…