What Can Be Learned by Teasing Apart Clinical Subgroups in Staphylococcal Bacteremia?

Among five categories of patients, those with nosocomial bacteremia due to an intravenous catheter had the lowest mortality.

The considerable variability of outcomes from Staphylococcus aureus bacteremia (SAB) is linked to factors such as underlying characteristics of patients, sources of acquisition, and sites of exposure. Investigators posit that certain groups of patients with SAB share similar clinical features and outcomes — termed subphenotypes — and that defining these traits could improve such outcomes.

To test this hypothesis, they studied participants in three studies: A retrospective observational analysis in Scotland; a randomized, double-blind study in the U.K.; and a multisite randomized trial in Spain. Using latent class analysis and several variables, they defined five clinical subphenotypes:

SAB associated with older age and comorbidities
SAB in pat…

Reviewing Author

Neil M. Ampel, MD

Disclosures

Editorial BoardsUpToDate

Leadership Positions in Professional SocietiesCoccidioidomycosis Study Group (Past President, Secretary, Treasurer)

Neil M. Ampel, MD

Disclosures

Editorial BoardsUpToDate

Leadership Positions in Professional SocietiesCoccidioidomycosis Study Group (Past President, Secretary, Treasurer)

What Can Be Learned by Teasing Apart Clinical Subgroups in Staphylococcal Bacteremia?

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Reviewing Author