Trends in Staphylococcus Aureus Infections in Veterans Affairs Medical Centers

The authors did observe that during the 12 year observation, nationally, the VA medical centers had a decrease in observed MRSA infections.  This was probably due MRSA carriage by their patients and good infection control intervention.  They also observed a 44% decrease in the use of fluoroquinolones in the VA system during this time period.  Novel agents effective against both methicillin sensitive Staphylococcus aureus (MSSA) and methicillin resistant Staph aureus (MRSA) are needed for the future.