VRE in cirrhotic patients

Vancomycin resistant enterococci (VRE) infections are of increasing concern in many hospitalized patients. Patients with cirrhosis are at added risk of infection with VRE, with associated increased risk for complications from infections. The goals of this study were to: [1] identify risk factors for VRE amongst cirrhotic patients before liver transplantation, and [2] evaluate risk of morbidity and mortality at 30-days and one-year after VRE infection.

Chart review of 533 cirrhotic patients hospitalized at a tertiary medical center was performed. Patients infected with VRE (n = 65) were separately compared to patients infected with gram-negative organisms (n = 80) and uninfected patients (n = 306).

In multivariable logistic regression analyses, female gender (OR 3.73(95% CI1.64,8.49)), severity of liver disease measured by higher Child Pugh scores (OR 0.37(95%CI 0.16,0.84)), presence of ascites (OR 9.43(95% CI 3.22,27.65) and any type of dialysis (OR 3.31,95% CI (1.21,9.04), oral antibiotic prophylaxis for spontaneous bacterial peritonitis and rifaximin use were statistically significantly associated with VRE infection (OR 2.37 (95%CI 1.27, 4.42)). VRE-infected patients had significantly longer mean ICU and total hospital stays (both p < 0.0001), with increased one-year mortality compared to cirrhotic patients without VRE infection, adjusted for age, sex, Hispanic ethnicity, and disease severity.

It is unclear whether VRE infection serves as an independent risk factor for increased mortality or an indicator for patients with more severe illnesses and thus a higher risk for death.