[Guidelines for the management of bone and joint infections due to methicillin resistant staphylococci]

Bone and joint infections are a group of complicated diseases with high morbidity. Emerging resistant microorganisms and the use of prosthetic devices have increased the difficulty in the medical treatment of patients. The purpose of these guidelines is to offer information on the management of bone and joint infections (post-invasive septic arthritis, chronic osteomyelitis and infected arthroplasty) produced by methicillin resistant staphylococci. They are oriented to physicians dedicated to internal medicine, infectious diseases, trauma and orthopedist surgeons as well as to everybody interested in this issue. The guidelines mainly point to the rational use of diagnostic methods and describe the new treatment modalities. A group of experts analyzed the different strategies for diagnosing and treating bone and joint infections due to methicillin resistant staphylococci and attempted at setting a level of evidence level and the strength of each recommendation.