NEW YORK (Reuters Health) - In 2017, multidrug-resistant infections led to $1.9 billion in healthcare costs, 448,224 days in the hospital and 11,852 deaths among older adults in the United States, according to a new analysis.
The greatest burden was associated with infections caused by methicillin-resistant Staphylococcus aureus (MRSA), carbapenem-resistant Enterobacteriaceae (CRE) and extended-spectrum beta-lactamase (ESBL)-producing Enterobacteriaceae.
"Efforts to prevent these infections could save a significant number of lives and healthcare resources," researchers write in Clinical Infectious Diseases.
"This new study is a stark reminder of the incredible and costly burden of antibiotic-resistant infections on our patients and our nation's health care system," Dr. Daniel McQuillen, president of the Infectious Diseases Society of America (IDSA), said in a news release.
"We must respond to this growing public health threat with strong federal investments in key areas to ensure that safe and effective antibiotics, upon which modern medicine relies, are available when patients need them," Dr. McQuillen added.
The estimates are based on a retrospective cohort analysis of patients 65 and older admitted to the Department of Veterans Affairs health care system. The analysis included 87,509 patients with positive cultures for multidrug-resistant bacteria and 835,048 matched controls.
"For the first time, we have data showing that antibiotic-resistant infections are disproportionately lethal in older Americans compared to their size of the population," study author Dr.
