Abstract
Community acquired methicillin-resistant Staphylococcus aureus (CA-MRSA) is a major global problem. Healthy carriers of S. aureus strains have an important role in the dissemination of this bacterium. The aim of this study was to estimate the prevalence of S. aureus and methicillin-resistant S. aureus (MRSA) carriage among healthy children in a city of Buenos Aires province, Argentina, and to determine the potential risk factors for its acquisition. We also described the molecular features of MRSA strains circulating in this population. S. aureus carriage was investigated in all children attending the last year of kindergarten during the 2008 school- year period. Household contacts of MRSA carriers were also screened. Of 316 healthy children, 98 (31.0%) carried S. aureus, including 14 MRSA carriers (4.4%) and 84 methicillin susceptible S. aureus (MSSA) carriers (26.6%). All MRSA isolates carried the SCC mec type IV cassette. Eight of the fourteen isolates were closely related to the clone responsible for most severe community-acquired MRSA infections caused in our country (CAA: PFGE A, SCC mec IV, spa t311, ST5). Two subtypes (A 1 and A 2) were distinguished in this group by PFGE. Both had agr type II and presented the same virulence determinants, except for PVL coding genes and sea that were only harbored by subtype A 1. Our results, based on the analysis of MRSA isolates recovered in the screening of healthy children, provide evidence of a community reservoir of the major CA-MRSA clone described in Argentina.
Talk to us
Join us for a 30 min session where you can share your feedback and ask us any queries you have
Disclaimer: All third-party content on this website/platform is and will remain the property of their respective owners and is provided on "as is" basis without any warranties, express or implied. Use of third-party content does not indicate any affiliation, sponsorship with or endorsement by them. Any references to third-party content is to identify the corresponding services and shall be considered fair use under The CopyrightLaw.