Open AccessPrevalence and characteristics of methicillin‐resistant Staphylococcus aureus colonization among healthcare professionals in a university hospital in Japan
Author(s) -
Yamasaki Fumi,
Takeuchi Seisho,
Uehara Yoshio,
Matsushita Masahide,
Arise Kazumi,
Morimoto Norihito,
Seo Hiromi
Publication year - 2019
Publication title -
journal of general and family medicine
Language(s) - English
Resource type - Journals
ISSN - 2189-7948
DOI - 10.1002/jgf2.263
Subject(s) - medicine , staphylococcus aureus , colonization , health professionals , health care , methicillin resistant staphylococcus aureus , university hospital , family medicine , microbiology and biotechnology , bacteria , genetics , economics , biology , economic growth
Background Asymptomatic carriers of methicillin‐resistant Staphylococcus aureus (MRSA) are important sources of nosocomial transmission. MRSA may be transmitted from hospitalized patients to healthcare professionals and vice versa. Methods The prevalence of MRSA colonization among forty‐five healthcare professionals in a Japanese hospital was determined by performing surveillance cultures to identify unrecognized carriers of MRSA. All MRSA isolates were evaluated using multilocus sequence typing (MLST) to identify the transmission routes. Results The proportion of MRSA colonization was significantly higher in healthcare professionals (11.1%) than in community residents (0.72%; P < 0.0001) or admission case (2.5%; P = 0.018). MLST analysis revealed that both the ST8 and ST764 strains were identified in residents, patients, and healthcare professionals. MRSA colonization was more frequently observed among physicians (4/13; 31%) than nurses (1/32; 3%) ( P = 0.020). Conclusion Multilocus sequence typing results suggest that ST8 and ST764 are involved in the occurrence of nosocomial MRSA infections. These findings emphasize the necessity for the effective education of physicians to prevent MRSA transmissions.