Toxic shock syndrome toxin 1-producing methicillin-resistant staphylococcus aureus of clonal complex 5, the New York/ Japan Epidemic Clone, causing a high early-mortality rate in patients with bloodstream infections

This study was performed to evaluate the clinical impacts of putative risk factors in patients with Staphylococcus aureus bloodstream infections (BSIs) through a prospective, multicenter, observational study. All 567 patients with S. aureus BSIs that occurred during a 1-year period in six general hospitals were included in this study. Host- and pathogen-related variables were investigated to determine risk factors for the early mortality of patients with S. aureus BSIs. The all-cause mortality rate was 15.0% (85/567) during the 4-week follow-up period from the initial blood culture, and 76.5% (65/85) of the mortality cases occurred within the first 2 weeks. One-quarter (26.8%, 152/567) of the S. aureus blood isolates carried the tst-1 gene, and most (86.2%, 131/152) of them were identified to be clonal complex 5 agr type 2 methicillin-resistant S. aureus (MRSA) strains harboring staphylococcal cassette chromosome mec type II, belonging to the New York/Japan epidemic clone. A multivariable logistic regression showed that the tst-1 positivity of the causative S. aureus isolates was associated with an increased 2-week mortality rate both in patients with S. aureus BSIs (adjusted odds ratio [aOR], 1.62; 95% confidence interval [CI], 0.90 to 2.88) and in patients with MRSA BSIs (aOR, 2.61; 95% CI, 1.19 to 6.03). Two host-related factors, an increased Pitt bacteremia score and advanced age, as well as a pathogen-related factor, carriage of tst-1 by causative MRSA isolates, were risk factors for 2-week mortality in patients with BSIs. Careful management of patients with BSIs caused by the New York/Japan epidemic clone is needed to improve clinical outcomes.