MRSA colonization is independently associated with shortened survival.
Patients with cystic fibrosis (CF) often become colonized or infected with multidrug-resistant pathogens. Infection with Pseudomonas aeruginosa and Burkholderia cepacia is known to be associated with poor prognosis, but whether colonization with methicillin-resistant Staphylococcus aureus (MRSA) is a marker of CF severity or an independent contributor to poor prognosis is uncertain.
Investigators examined the association between MRSA colonization and survival in 19,833 patients (age, >6 years) who were entered in the U.S. Cystic Fibrosis Foundation Patient Registry between 1996 and 2006. Patients who were colonized with MRSA at enrollment were excluded. The primary outcome was time from age at entry in the registry to age at death. During a …