Short versus long duration of ceftaroline combination therapy and outcomes in persistent or high-grade MRSA bacteremia: A retrospective single-center study

Background Methicillin-resistant Staphylococcus aureus (MRSA) is associated with high mortality rates. Despite antibiotic therapy, persistent bacteremia is challenging to treat. Combination therapy with ceftaroline has emerged as a potential treatment option; however, the optimal duration and clinical implications after bacteremia clearance are unknown. Methods This retrospective cohort study examined patients with high-grade or persistent MRSA bacteremia who were treated with ceftaroline combination therapy at the University of New Mexico Hospital between January 2014 and June 2021. Patients were categorized into short- ( Results A total of 32 patients were included in this study. The most common sources of bacteremia were bone/joint and endovascular (28.1%, 9/32 each). The median duration of combination therapy after clearance was seven days (IQR 2.8, 11). Patients in the long-duration group had a lower Charlson comorbidity index (1.0 vs 5.5, p = 0.017) than those in the short-duration group. After adjusting for confounders, there was no significant difference in the 30-day all-cause mortality between the groups (AOR 0.17, 95% CI 0.007–1.85, p = 0.18). No association was found between combination therapy duration and recurrence (OR 2.53, 95% CI 0.19–inf, p = 0.24) or adverse drug events (OR 3.46, 95% CI 0.39–74.86, p = 0.31). After controlling for total hospital length of stay, there was no significant difference in the post-bacteremia clearance length of stay between the two groups (p = 0.37). Conclusions Prolonging ceftaroline combination therapy after bacteremia clearance did not significantly improve outcomes in patients with persistent or high-grade MRSA bacteremia. The limitations of this study warrant cautious interpretation of its results. Larger studies are needed to determine the optimal duration and role of combination therapy for this difficult-to-treat infection.