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Echocardiography Versus no Echocardiography in S. Aureus Bacteraemia and VIRSTA Score < 3

Echocardiography Versus no Echocardiography in Individuals With Staphylococcus Aureus Bacteremia and a VIRSTA Score <3: a Non-inferiority Randomized Controlled Trial

Status
Recruiting
Phases
NA
Study type
Interventional
Source
ClinicalTrials.gov
Registry ID
NCT06457386
Acronym
VIRSTA-VAL
Enrollment
700
Registered
2024-06-13
Start date
2025-05-14
Completion date
2028-12-31
Last updated
2025-11-24

For informational purposes only — not medical advice. Sourced from public registries and may not reflect the latest updates. Terms

Conditions

Bacteremia, Infective Endocarditis, Staphylococcus Aureus

Keywords

VIRSTA score < 3, Staphylococcus aureus bacteraemia, Echocardiography, Infective endocarditis

Brief summary

Staphylococcus aureus is the most frequent cause of both healthcare-associated and community-acquired bloodstream infections worldwide. Infective endocarditis (IE) has been detected in 5-17% of cases and is a determinant of poor prognosis. The investigators developed a score (the VIRSTA score) based on patients' characteristics to rule out IE with high confidence (negative predictive value (NPV) above 99%) in patients with SAB. This score, with a cut-off of 3 has been externally validated by two international studies which have also established its high NPV. The 2023 European society of cardiology (ESC) guidelines state that echocardiography should be considered in all patients with Staphylococcus aureus bacteremia (SAB) using risk scores (including VIRSTA score) to guide the use or not of echocardiography. While recommended, the investigators think that VIRSTA score must be evaluated in terms of patients' outcome.

Detailed description

In the interventional arm (no-echocardiography strategy) without echocardiography, at the individual level, not performing an echocardiography will avoid a useless examination, the mobilization of the patient and the discomfort related to its performance. In this arm, the theoretical risk is to diagnose Infective endocarditis (IE ) only at a later phase stage, i.e., at a phase of symptomatic manifestation of valve regurgitation or at the occurrence of relapse of bacteremia due to insufficient duration of antibiotic treatment. It should be noted that patients with prosthetic valve, who have de facto a VIRSTA score \> 3, will therefore not be included in the protocol. Given the expected rarity of IE in patients with a VIRSTA score \<3 and the theoretical consequences of not performing echocardiography, the primary endpoint chosen will be mortality and Staphylococcus aureus bacteraemia (SAB) relapse. The endpoint will be assessed at 90 days and not at discharge to capture relapses of inadequately treated bacteremia and the mid-term consequences of a possible delay in IE diagnosis. On a collective scale, not performing echocardiography in many patients in whom it is not useful will allow resources to be allocated to the individuals who need it most.

Interventions

PROCEDUREsystematic echocardiography

transthoracic echocardiography (TTE) will be performed as soon as possible within 14 days following the first blood sample collection for SAB diagnosis, completed, if required, by a transoesophageal (TEE) echocardiography based on the judgment of the echocardiographist. SAB in patients of both arms will be treated according to current recommendations, taking into account the result of the echocardiography in the control arm.

PROCEDUREno echocardiography arm

no echocardiography will be performed unless occurrence of new events evocating IE (extra-cardiac events or positive Staphylococcus aureus blood culture), based on the clinical judgment of the investigator. SAB in patients of both arms will be treated according to current recommendations, taking into account the result of the echocardiography in the control arm.

Sponsors

Assistance Publique - Hôpitaux de Paris
Lead SponsorOTHER

Study design

Allocation
RANDOMIZED
Intervention model
PARALLEL
Primary purpose
DIAGNOSTIC
Masking
SINGLE (Outcomes Assessor)

Eligibility

Sex/Gender
ALL
Age
18 Years to No maximum
Healthy volunteers
No

Inclusion criteria

* Volunteers over 18 years of age; * Hospitalized with at least one blood culture positive for Staphylococcus aureus; * At the time of inclusion, negative control blood culture performed 48 hours after the first Staphylococcus aureus blood culture collection; * VIRSTA score \< 3;

Exclusion criteria

* Patient with catheter colonization without SAB, defined as positive blood cultures only through vascular access device specimen; * Patient referred to the hospital for the management of IE; * Contra indication to transthoracic echocardiography (TTE); * Echocardiography already performed before inclusion (TTE or TEE) for the current SAB; * Pregnancy; * Patient under guardianship or trusteeship. * Absence of written informed consent from the patient * No affiliation to social security (beneficiary or assignee) * Subject already involved in another interventional clinical research for which echocardiography must be done

Design outcomes

Primary

MeasureTime frameDescription
All causes mortality90 Days
SAB relapse microbiologically confirmed90 DaysRelapse of SAB is defined in patients with bacteriologic success as the isolation of a strain of Staphylococcus aureus with in vitro antibiotic susceptibility pattern similar to that of the Staphylococcus aureus strain isolated at inclusion. Relapse will be confirmed at the end of the study by an independent adjudication committee

Secondary

MeasureTime frameDescription
Length of hospitalization (days)180 Days
All-causes mortality180 Days
Number of definite IE according to ESC 2023 criteriathe end of hospital stay, up to 90 daysAn independent adjudication committee will classify definite, possible or excluded IE according to the 2023 ESC criteria
Cost difference between the two strategies90 DaysCost-effectiveness analysis if there is a difference in the number of events in each arm
quality of life measured by EQ5D5L180 Days
Number of SAB relapse90 Days
Number of IE valvular cardiac surgery and indications (heart failure, uncontrolled infection or prevention of embolism)the end of hospital stay, up to 90 days

Countries

France

Contacts

Primary ContactXavier Duval
xavier.duval@aphp.fr01 40 25 71 35
Backup ContactSarah Tubiana
sarah.tubiana@aphp.fr01 40 25 60 51

Outcome results

None listed

Source: ClinicalTrials.gov · Data processed: Feb 4, 2026