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HHIC : MRSA
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Why important?
Infections with methicillin-resistant Staphylococcus aureus (MRSA) (often called "staph") are resitant to the usual antibiotics used to treat them. Although Staphylococcus is a common bacterium that resides on skin and in nasal passages, it can cause infections if it enters the body through a cut in the skin, and these infections can be serious.
Risk factors
People with weakened immune systems, burns, surgical wounds or serious underlying health problems are at increased risk. In addition, people residing in long term care facilities (because MRSA is prevalent in these facilities), and people who are on dialysis, are catheterized, or have feeding tubes or other invasive devices are at higher risk.
How is Hawaii doing?
Since 1995, there has been a steady increase in the number of hospital stays for MRSA. Hospital stays for these infections nearly tripled after 2000 and increased twenty-fold after 1995. Hospital stays for MRSA infections are highest on Maui where there were 188 MRSA hospitalizations per 100,000 population in 2006, followed by Kauai with 176 hospitalizations per 100,000 population. [See 'Other views, By region'.] Hawaii’s hospitalization rate is higher than the Mainland, where rates range between 89 and 113 hospitalizations per 100,000 population.
MRSA increases resource utilization. The average length of stay of patients hospitalized with MRSA infection is more than triple that for non-MRSA stays--18.8 days versus 5.3 days. MRSA hospitalizations charges are triple that for non-MRSA-stays--$66,000 for MRSA stays compared with $22,000 for non-MRSA hospitalizations.
Other views
Data notes
The ICD-9-CM code defining methicillin-resistant Staphlococcus aureaus infection is V09.0.
Data Source
Hawaii HHIC Inpatient Database; U.S.: AHRQ, Healthcare Cost and Utilization Project, Nationwide Inpatient Sample.
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