Association of Appropriate Empirical Antimicrobial Therapy With In-Hospital Mortality in Patients With Bloodstream Infections in the US

Is the use of appropriate initial empirical antimicrobial therapy associated with lower in-hospital mortality in patients with bloodstream infections?

In this cross-sectional study including 32 100 patients with bloodstream infections from 183 US hospitals, the crude proportions of appropriate empirical therapy use were 94.4% for gram-negative rods, 97.0% for gram-positive cocci, and 65.1% for Candida species, with lower proportions for resistant pathogens. Receipt of appropriate empirical antimicrobial therapy was associated with lower in-hospital mortality for patients infected with gram-negative rods, gram-positive cocci, and Candida species.

This study suggests that use of appropriate initial empirical antimicrobial therapy may have a role in inpatient hospital mortality.