431. Screening and Targeted Staphylococcus aureus Decolonization of Acute and Intensive Care Patients and Invasive Infections in an Academic Medical Center

Abstract

Background Staphylococcus aureus is a common cause of healthcare associated infections and is associated with high mortality. Universal S. aureus decolonization reduces methicillin-resistant S. aureus (MRSA) and other bloodstream infections among ICU patients. However, universal decolonization in acute care settings has not shown a similar benefit. We describe a screening and targeted decolonization protocol implemented at an academic hospital across acute and intensive care settings. The goal of this study was to assess the impact of decolonization on rates of S. aureus invasive infections. Methods Adult Medicine, Oncology, Transplant, and ICU patients were screened by nasal swab for S. aureus colonization on admission and change in level of care. Colonized patients received 5 days of chlorhexidine 2% applied to the body and mupirocin for the nares. We compared decolonized patients with patients who received no decolonization. The primary outcome was S. aureus invasive infection from hospital day 5 until discharge, defined by positive cultures from sterile sites. Secondary outcomes included 30-day readmission and 30-day mortality. Results Between 2018-2020, 3,835 (23%) out of 16,467 hospitalized patients screened positive for MSSA (74%) or MRSA (26%). Among colonized patients, median age was 67 years (interquartile range [IQR] 54-79) and median LOS was 6 days (IQR 4-11). Among patients with LOS ≥ 5 days, 977 (37%) received decolonization. There were 122 invasive infections, 56 (46%) occurring in patients who received decolonization. Wound infections were most common (28; 23%), followed by bacteremia (27; 22%). In multivariate regression analysis controlling for confounding factors including comorbidities and length of stay, decolonization was not significantly associated with incident invasive infections (p = 0.395). Conclusion We report on a S. aureus screening and targeted decolonization program; our initial analyses do not demonstrate an association between decolonization and reduced invasive S. aureus infections. Further investigations will examine subsets of high-risk patients and transmission events to assess if specific populations may benefit from this program. Disclosures All Authors: No reported disclosures.