Bacteriophage and antibiotic combination therapy for recurrent <i>Enterococcus faecium</i> bacteremia

Abstract

Phage therapy is an emerging therapeutic approach for treating bacterial infections that do not respond to traditional antibiotics. The addition of phage therapy to systemic antibiotics to treat a patient with recurrent <i>E. faecium</i> infections that were non-responsive to antibiotics alone resulted in fewer hospitalizations and improved the patient's quality of life. Combination phage and antibiotic therapy reduced <i>E. faecium</i> and VRE abundance in the patient's stool. Eventually, an anti-phage antibody response emerged that was able to neutralize phage activity, which may have limited clinical efficacy. This study demonstrates the potential of phages as an additional option in the antimicrobial toolbox for treating invasive enterococcal infections and highlights the need for further investigation to ensure phage therapy can be deployed for maximum clinical benefit.