Prevalence of Methicillin-Resistant Staphylococcus Aureus (MRSA) infection in patients with Cystic Fibrosis: a meta-analysis

Background: Methicillin-resistant staphylococcus aureus (MRSA) infection is increasingly being reported among patients with cystic fibrosis (CF) and contributes to pulmonary morbidity in CF, with poorer prognosis. The aim of this study was to assess the prevalence of MRSA infection in patients with CF. Methods We conducted this study according to the Preferred Reporting Items for Systematic Reviews and Meta-Analyses (PRISMA) guidelines. Databases of MEDLINE/PubMed, WHO-Virtual Health Library (VHL), ScienceDirect, Google Scholar and OpenGrey were searched to recruit the relevant articles. Pooled prevalence with the corresponding 95% confidence interval (CI) was calculated using OpenMeta Analyst software, and heterogeneity among studies was estimated using the I2 statistics. Results According to our inclusion criteria, 27 studies included a total of 47,413 patients were analyzed. The pooled prevalence of MRSA in patients with CF was 15.2% (95% CI 9.70%– 20.7%). Subgroup analyses and meta-regression showed that the prevalence of MRSA in patients with CF was significantly associated with different geographical areas (P<0.001), data collection method (P<0.001), sample obtaining source (P<0.001), and study year (P = 0.006). Conclusions prevalence of MRSA infection is increasing in patients with CF. the results of this study could provide a reference for further controlling transmission and the management of patients with CF. Healthcare providers need to be aware of the clinically important association between MRSA infection and CF to ensure effective management.