Molecular characterization of methicillin-resistant Staphylococcus epidermidis clones: Evidence of geographic dissemination

Maria Miragaia, Isabel Couto, Sandro F.F. Pereira, Karl Gustaf Kristinsson, Henrik T. Westh, Jens Otto Jarløv, Jonas Almeida, Ilda Santos Sanches, H. de Lencastre

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86 Citations (Scopus)

Abstract

Denmark and Iceland are countries where the frequency ofmethicillin-resistantStaphylococcusaureus is very low due to strict infection control and restrictive antibiotic use policies. In contrast,methicillin-resistantS.epidermidis(MRSE) continues to be isolated as a nosocomial pathogen. Themoleculartyping by pulsed-field gel electrophoresis (PFGE) of 136MRSEisolates from five hospitals in Denmark and 94MRSEisolates from one hospital in Iceland collected in 1997 and 1998 defined 40 different patterns. Closely related PFGE types were found in isolates recovered in Iceland, Denmark, Mexico, Uruguay, Greece, and Cape Verde, evidencing for the first time thegeographicclonaldisseminationofMRSEstrains. The large majority (87.4%) of theMRSEisolates studied were multiresistant.
Original languageEnglish
Pages (from-to)430-438
Number of pages9
JournalJournal Of Clinical Microbiology
Volume40
Issue number2
DOIs
Publication statusPublished - 1 Jan 2002

Keywords

  • epidemiology
  • hospitals
  • coagulase-negative staphylococci
  • catheter-related infections
  • field gel-electrophoresis
  • intensive-care unit
  • strains
  • aureus
  • vancomycin
  • susceptibility

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