Phenotypic and genetic characterisation of methicillin-resistant Staphylococcus aureus strains isolated from the university hospitals of Debrecen

Eur J Clin Microbiol Infect Dis. 2009 Feb;28(2):129-36. doi: 10.1007/s10096-008-0588-1. Epub 2008 Oct 2.

Abstract

The purpose of this study was to characterise methicillin-resistant Staphylococcus aureus (MRSA) strains isolated in 2005 at the university hospitals of Debrecen, Hungary. Three hundred and thirty-nine MRSA strains were isolated from 102 patients at 18 different clinics. Their sensitivity to oxacillin and ten other antibiotics was determined. For genotypic analysis, phage typing and pulsed-field gel electrophoresis (PFGE) was performed. The rate of MRSA strains increased to 7.2% in 2005, especially at the clinics of surgery, pulmonology and paediatrics. No vancomycin- or teicoplanin-resistant strains were found. The resistance to erythromycin, clindamycin and ciprofloxacin was nearly 100% and multi-resistance was very frequent. Fifty-eight percent of the isolates belonged to mixed phage types and 8% was non-typable. One PFGE clone contained 58.2% of all strains and two further major clones were found at a separately located clinical block, indicating intra-hospital spread. We can conclude that MRSA exhibits an increasing nosocomial problem also in Hungary.

Publication types

  • Research Support, Non-U.S. Gov't

MeSH terms

  • Bacterial Typing Techniques
  • Cross Infection / epidemiology*
  • Cross Infection / microbiology
  • Drug Resistance, Bacterial
  • Drug Resistance, Multiple, Bacterial
  • Electrophoresis, Gel, Pulsed-Field
  • Hospitals, University
  • Humans
  • Hungary
  • Methicillin-Resistant Staphylococcus aureus / classification
  • Methicillin-Resistant Staphylococcus aureus / genetics*
  • Microbial Sensitivity Tests
  • Phenotype*
  • Prevalence
  • Staphylococcal Infections / epidemiology*
  • Staphylococcal Infections / microbiology