PT  - JOURNAL ARTICLE
AU  - Nicolas A. Forcade
AU  - Michael L. Parchman
AU  - James H. Jorgensen
AU  - Liem C. Du
AU  - Natalie R. Nyren
AU  - Lucina B. Treviño
AU  - Joel Peña
AU  - Michael W. Mann
AU  - Abilio Muñoz
AU  - Sylvia B. Treviño
AU  - Eric M. Mortensen
AU  - Brian L. Wickes
AU  - Brad H. Pollock
AU  - Christopher R. Frei
TI  - Prevalence, Severity, and Treatment of Community-Acquired Methicillin-Resistant <span class="named-content genus-species" id="named-content-1">Staphylococcus Aureus</span> (CA-MRSA) Skin and Soft Tissue Infections in 10 Medical Clinics in Texas: A South Texas Ambulatory Research Network (STARNet) Study
AID  - 10.3122/jabfm.2011.05.110073
DP  - 2011 Sep 01
TA  - The Journal of the American Board of Family
                Medicine
PG  - 543--550
VI  - 24
IP  - 5
4099  - http://www.jabfm.org/content/24/5/543.short
4100  - http://www.jabfm.org/content/24/5/543.full
SO  - J Am Board Fam Med2011 Sep 01; 24
AB  - Objectives: Quantify the prevalence, measure the severity, and describe treatment patterns in patients who present to medical clinics in Texas with community-acquired methicillin-resistant Staphylococcus aureus (CA-MRSA) skin and soft-tissue infections (SSTI). Methods: Ten primary care clinics participated in this prospective, community-based study. Clinicians consented patients and collected clinical information, pictures, and wound swabs; data were processed centrally. MRSASelect™ was used for identification. Susceptibilities were determined via Etest®. Results: Overall, 73 of 119 (61%) patients presenting with SSTIs meeting eligibility requirements had CA-MRSA. Among these, 49% were male, 79% were Hispanic, and 30% had diabetes. Half (56%) of the lesions were ≥ 5 cm in diameter. Most patients had abscesses (82%) and many reported pain scores of ≥ 7 of 10 (67%). Many presented with erythema (85%) or drainage (56%). Most received incision and drainage plus an antibiotic (64%). Antibiotic monotherapy was frequently prescribed: trimethoprim-sulfamethoxazole (TMP-SMX) (78%), clindamycin (4%), doxycycline (2%), and mupirocin (2%). The rest received TMP-SMX in combination with other antibiotics. TMP-SMX was frequently administered as one double-strength tablet twice daily. Isolates were 93% susceptible to clindamycin and 100% susceptible to TMP-SMX, doxycycline, vancomycin, and linezolid. Conclusions: We report a predominance of CA-MRSA SSTIs, favorable antibiotic susceptibilities, and frequent use of TMP-SMX in primary care clinics.