Zyvox Best for MRSA Surgical Site Infections

Surgical patients treated for methicillin-resistant Staphylococcus aureus (MRSA) with Zyvox (linesolid) showed success rates of 87% compared to 48% for patients treated with vancomycin, according to a new study published in the December 2004 issue of the American Journal of Surgery.

Patients who develop surgical site infections are 60% more likely to spend time in an intensive care unit, five times more likely to be re-admitted to the hospital, and twice as likely to die. Data show that MRSA caused 30% of surgical site infections in U.S. hospitals in 2000, compared to 24% in 1997. In the study, most patients received the intravenous (IV) formulation of Zyvox. Although the total length of treatment among groups was comparable, the mean duration of IV treatment was significantly shorter for Zyvox patients than for vancomycin patients (4.7 days vs 11.1 days, respectively).

The subset analysis of 135 patients with surgical site infections was taken from a large, randomized, multicenter trial of 1,200 patients designed to compare the clinical efficacy and safety of Zyvox (Pfizer, Inc.).

"As the prevalence of surgical site infections caused by MRSA increases, identifying MRSA early and having alternatives to vancomycin become extremely important, since any patient undergoing surgery is at risk,” said lead investigator Dr. John Weigelt, professor and vice chairman of the department of surgery at the Medical College of Wisconsin (Milwaukee, USA).