A successful salvage therapy with daptomycin and linezolid for right-sided infective endocarditis and septic pulmonary embolism caused by methicillin-resistant Staphylococcus aureus

Abstract Although vancomycin administration is recommended for the treatment of infective endocarditis (IE) caused by methicillin-resistant Staphylococcus aureus (MRSA), it is unclear whether an alternative agent, daptomycin, can be used to treat IE with pulmonary complications. A 26-year-old female who had undergone surgical repair of a ventricular septal defect as an early teenager presented with fever, headache, and vomiting. She was admitted to our hospital and diagnosed with right-sided IE with septic pulmonary embolism caused by MRSA. Vancomycin, rifampicin, and gentamicin were administered; however, exacerbation of drug eruption due to the antimicrobial agents on the 11th day led us to switch from vancomycin and rifampicin to daptomycin. Furthermore, we included linezolid to treat lung abscesses that accompanied the septic pulmonary embolism. We confirmed negative blood cultures on the 18th day. On the same day, a patch closure for the ventricular septal defect and tricuspid valve replacement were performed. She was discharged on the 65th day with an uneventful postoperative course. This experience suggests that daptomycin and linezolid are effective salvage therapies for right-sided IE caused by MRSA and accompanied by pulmonary complications.