"We may actually be starting to get a toehold on" these dangerous germs, said Dr. Buddy Creech, a Vanderbilt University infectious disease specialist who was not involved in the research. "That's encouraging."
In 1997, there were an estimated 43 MRSA infections for every 100,000 intensive-care patients who spent a day hooked up to IV tubes. By 2007, that number dropped to just 21.
The study authors say the results are probably a sign that doctors and nurses are working harder at prevention efforts. These include frequent hand-washing, instrument sterilization, and other measures.
The focus of the study were catheters that are typically threaded into an artery near the heart to deliver medicine or monitor vital signs. These tubes can increase the risks for infection from all kinds of bacteria.
Among the most dangerous are methicillin-resistant Staphylococcus aureus bacteria. The MRSA bacteria often live harmlessly on the skin or in the nose but can spread quickly and become deadly once they enter the bloodstream.
MRSA bacteria can't be treated with common antibiotics, and cause more than 90,000 serious infections and more than 18,000 deaths nationwide each year.
The research appears in today's Journal of the American Medical Association.
Some states have adopted or are considering laws requiring MRSA testing or other prevention steps in hospitals.
