Treatment of severe MRSA infections: current practice and further development

Excerpt

Staphylococcus aureus is one of the “ESKAPE pathogens”, considered to require urgent development of new therapies, in spite of some decline in the incidence of methicillin-resistant S. aureus (MRSA) infections. Vancomycin, a glycopeptide with an excellent spectrum of activity against Gram-positive pathogens through inhibition of cell wall synthesis, has been the mainstay of treatment for MRSA. However, MRSA infections are associated with increased morbidity and mortality, when compared with methicillin-sensitive S. aureus (MSSA), and several weaknesses have been identified related to vancomycin use, namely slower bacterial killing than oxacillin, poor penetration in the lungs and central nervous system, and frequent underdosage in critically ill patients as a result of increased volume of distribution and renal hyperfiltration [1]. …