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Failure of Oral Antimicrobial Agents in Eradicating Gastrointestinal Colonization With Vancomycin-Resistant Enterococci

Published online by Cambridge University Press:  02 January 2015

Ray Hachem
Affiliation:
Section of Infection Control, Department of Internal Medicine Specialties, The University of Texas M.D. Anderson Cancer Center, Houston, Texas
Issam Raad*
Affiliation:
Section of Infection Control, Department of Internal Medicine Specialties, The University of Texas M.D. Anderson Cancer Center, Houston, Texas
*
Professor of Medicine, The University of Texas M.D. Anderson Cancer Center, Department of Infection Diseases, Infection Control and Employee Health (Box 402), 1515 Holcombe Blvd., Houston, TX 77030

Abstract

Eradication of gastrointestinal colonization with vancomycin-resistant enterococci (VRE) using a combination of oral bacitracin and gentamicin was evaluated. Twenty-eight evaluable treated patients were matched with 28 control patients. After 3 months of follow-up, 5 patients (18%) in the treatment group versus 1 patient (4%) in the control group (P = .2) had negative results on stool cultures, with a similar frequency of VRE bacteremia (P = .8). The use of oral bacitracin plus gentamicin did not reduce VRE colonization or bacteremia.

Type
Concise Communications
Copyright
Copyright © The Society for Healthcare Epidemiology of America 2002

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