Clinical Characteristics and Outcomes of Healthcare-Associated Hematogenous Vertebral Osteomyelitis

BACKGROUND: The incidence of hematogenous vertebral osteomyelitis (HVO) has increased over recent years, likely due to longer life expectancies, higher prevalence of chronic disease, and more effective diagnostic techniques. Recently, healthcare-associated infections, such as catheter-related and procedure-related bloodstream infections, also increase the risk of HVO. The aim of our study was to evaluate the clinical characteristics and outcomes of healthcare-associated HVO (HCA-HVO). METHODS: We conducted a retrospective chart review of adult patients with microbiologically diagnosed HVO from five tertiary-care hospitals over 8-year period. HCA-HVO was defined as onset of symptoms after 1 month of hospitalization or within 6 months after hospital discharge, or ambulatory manipulations in the 6 months before the diagnosis [Pigrau et al. Medicine (Baltimore) 2015; 94:e365]. We compared the clinical characteristics and outcomes of HCA-HVO with community-acquired HVO (CA-HVO) cases. RESULTS: In total, 358 patients with microbiologically diagnosed HVO were included in final analysis. Of these 358 cases, 256 (63.1%) were CA-HVO and 132 (36.9%) were HCA-HVO according to the predefined criteria. The main causative pathogens identified were methicillin-susceptible Staphylococcus aureus (32%), followed by methicillin-resistant S. aureus (MRSA) (26%), aerobic gram-negative bacteria (24%), and Streptococcus species (11%). Compared with CA-HVO cases, patients with HCA-HVO had more neoplasm (13.6% vs. 5.8%, P = 0.01) and end-stage renal disease (8.3% vs. 2.2%, P = 0.007). MRSA was more frequent pathogens in HCA-HVO cases than in CA-HVO (37.1% vs. 17.7%, P = 0.01). Patients with HCA-HVO were more likely to be have the higher rates of persistent bacteremia for ≥7 days (24.2% vs. 15.5%, P = 0.04), 1-year mortality (18.2% vs. 11.5%, P = 0.08) and 1-year relapse (12.1% vs. 6.2%, P = 0.051). CONCLUSION: In this study, more than one-third of HVO is health care associated. Patients with HCA-HVO were more likely to have underlying illness, and their causative pathogens were more frequently MRSA. Outcomes of HCA-HVO were poorer, which require prevention measures and early diagnosis. DISCLOSURES: All authors: No reported disclosures.