Linezolid reduces length of stay and duration of intravenous treatment compared with vancomycin for complicated skin and soft tissue infections due to suspected or proven methicillin-resistant Staphylococcus aureus (MRSA).

We compared the health outcomes in patients treated with linezolid or vancomycin for complicated skin and soft tissue infections (cSSTIs). This analysis is part of a randomised, open-label, multinational trial involving 1200 adult patients hospitalised with cSSTIs due to suspected or proven methicillin-resistant Staphylococcus aureus (MRSA). Subjects received linezolid 600 mg intravenous (i.v.) or oral, or vancomycin 1g i.v. every 12 h. A test-of-cure was assessed at 7 days post therapy. Compared with vancomycin, linezolid treatment was associated with significantly shorter length of stay (all P < 0.01), decreased i.v. antibiotic treatment duration (all P < 0.0001) and higher discharge rates (all P < 0.05). Thus, linezolid has the potential to reduce medical resource use for the treatment of cSSTIs.