mupirocin
Regulatory sources consulted
Approved indications
- Secondarily infected traumatic skin lesions up to 10 cm or 100 cm² caused by susceptible Staphylococcus aureus or Streptococcus pyogenes.
Contraindications
Absolute
- Hypersensitivity to mupirocin or any excipient.
Clinical warnings
- Major warning · For cutaneous use only; do not use intranasally, ophthalmically, or on mucosae. Stop for sensitization or severe irritation. Monitor for microbial overgrowth and C. difficile-associated diarrhea. — openFDA mupirocin cream set ID 0580458d-7178-4031-8ac7-0cda281ade8b
Adverse events
Common (≥1%)
Headache · Rash · Nausea
Rare but serious
Anaphylaxis, angioedema, or generalized rash
Pregnancy and lactation
Human data are insufficient. During breastfeeding, weigh benefits and risks; thoroughly wash any treated breast or nipple before nursing.
Recent literature (PubMed)
This paper discusses the mechanisms of S. aureus drug resistance including: (1) introduction. (2) resistance to beta-lactam antibiotics, with particular emphasis on the mec genes found in the Staphylococcaceae family, the structure and occurrence of SCCmec cassettes, as well as differences in the presence of some virulence genes and its expression in major epidemiological types and clones of HA-MRSA, CA-MRSA, and LA-MRSA strains. Other mechanisms of resistance to beta-lactam antibiotics will also be discussed, such as mutations in the gdpP gene, BORSA or MODSA phenotypes, as well as resistance to ceftobiprole and ceftaroline. (3) Resistance to glycopeptides (VRSA, VISA, hVISA strains, vancomycin tolerance). (4) Resistance to oxazolidinones (mutational and enzymatic resistance to linezolid). (5) Resistance to MLS-B (macrolides, lincosamides, ketolides, and streptogramin B). (6) Aminoglycosides and spectinomicin, including resistance genes, their regulation and localization (plasmids, transposons, class I integrons, SCCmec), and types and spectrum of enzymes that inactivate aminoglycosides. (7). Fluoroquinolones (8) Tetracyclines, including the mechanisms of active protection of the drug target site and active efflux of the drug from the bacterial cell. (9) Mupirocin. (10) Fusidic acid. (11) Daptomycin. (12) Resistance to other antibiotics and chemioterapeutics (e.g., streptogramins A, quinupristin/dalfopristin, chloramphenicol, rifampicin, fosfomycin, trimethoprim) (13) Molecular epidemiology of MRSA.
Surgical site infections (SSIs) are one of the most significant complications in surgical patients and are strongly associated with poorer prognosis. Due to their aggressive character, cardiac surgical procedures carry a particular high risk of postoperative infection, with infection incidence rates ranging from a reported 3.5% and 26.8% in cardiac surgery patients. Given the specific nature of cardiac surgical procedures, sternal wound and graft harvesting site infections are the most common SSIs. Undoubtedly, DSWIs, including mediastinitis, in cardiac surgery patients remain a significant clinical problem as they are associated with increased hospital stay, substantial medical costs and high mortality, ranging from 3% to 20%. In SSI prevention, it is important to implement procedures reducing preoperative risk factors, such as: obesity, hypoalbuminemia, abnormal glucose levels, smoking and S. aureus carriage. For decolonisation of S. aureus carriers prior to cardiac surgery, it is recommended to administer nasal mupirocin, together with baths using chlorhexidine-based agents. Perioperative management also involves antibiotic prophylaxis, surgical site preparation, topical antibiotic administration and the maintenance of normal glucose levels. SSI treatment involves surgical intervention, NPWT application and antibiotic therapy.
The aim of these guidelines is to provide recommendations for decolonization and perioperative antibiotic prophylaxis (PAP) in multidrug-resistant Gram-positive bacteria (MDR-GPB) adult carriers before inpatient surgery. These European Society of Clinical Microbiology and Infectious Diseases/European Committee on Infection Control guidelines were developed following a systematic review of published studies targeting methicillin-resistant Staphylococcus aureus (MRSA), vancomycin-resistant enterococci, methicillin-resistant coagulase-negative Staphylococci, and pan-drug-resistant-GPB. Critical outcomes were the occurrence of surgical site infections (SSIs) caused by the colonizing MDR-GPB and SSIs-attributable mortality. Important outcomes included the occurrence of SSIs caused by any pathogen, hospital-acquired infections, all-cause mortality, and adverse events associated with the interventions, including resistance development to the agents used and the incidence of Clostridioides difficile infections. The last search of all databases was performed on 1 November 2023. The level of evidence and the strength of each recommendation were defined according to the Grading of Recommendations Assessment, Development, and Evaluation approach. Consensus of a multidisciplinary expert panel was reached for the final list of recommendations. Antimicrobial stewardship considerations were included. The guideline panel reviewed the impact of decolonization, targeted PAP, and combined interventions (e.g. decolonization and targeted PAP) on the risk of SSIs and other outcomes in MDR-GPB carriers, according to the type of bacteria and type of surgery. We recommend screening for S. aureus before high-risk operations, such as cardiothoracic and orthopaedic surgery. Decolonization with intranasal mupirocin with or without a chlorhexidine bath is recommended in patients colonized with S. aureus before cardiothoracic and orthopaedic surgery and suggested in other surgeries. The addition o
Acute radiation oral mucositis (AROM) is a major dose-limiting toxic effect in patients with nasopharyngeal cancer undergoing radiotherapy. Reduction of severe (grade ≥3) AROM by bacterial decolonization (BD) could improve treatment tolerance and quality of life. To evaluate the efficacy of BD with mupirocin nasal ointment in alleviating severe AROM compared with standard of care (SoC) by reducing Staphylococcus aureus colonization in nasal and oral mucosal during radiotherapy for nasopharyngeal cancer. This was a single-center, open-label, phase 3 randomized clinical trial in China that enrolled patients with nasopharyngeal carcinoma (NPC) undergoing definitive chemoradiotherapy between July 2023 and February 2024. Data were analyzed from June 2024 to September 2024. The BD group received mupirocin nasal ointment twice daily for 3 days before radiotherapy for 5 consecutive days followed by a 1-week break, which was repeated throughout radiotherapy. Patients in the SoC group received routine nasal and oral care. The primary outcome was the incidence of severe (grade ≥3) AROM. Oral mucositis assessments were performed by independent evaluators who were blinded to group assignments. Secondary end points included quality of life assessed using the Quality-of-Life Questionnaire-Head and Neck 43 [QLQ-H&N43]), and the colonization levels of S aureus in nasal and oral mucosa. A total of 176 patients (mean [SD] age, 52.1 [10.1] years; 42 female [23.9%] individuals) were randomly assigned to the BD intervention group (n = 88) or the SoC control group (n = 88). In the BD group, severe AROM occurred in 20 of 88 patients (22.7%) compared with 42 (47.7%) in the SoC group (relative risk, 0.48; 95% CI, 0.31-0.74; P < .001). Multivariable logistic analysis confirmed the effect of BD (odds ratio, 0.27, 95% CI, 0.13-0.54; P < .001) on severe AROM risk reduction. The QLQ-H&N43 assessment showed BD significantly reduced symptom severity compared to SoC during radiotherapy, with lower m