ABSTRACT
Staphylococcus aureus is the main human pathogen that colonizes individuals in general population. The objective of the study was evaluate the epidemiological and sensitivity profile of S. aureus lineage, isolated in health care workers (HCW) of a University Hospital in Pernambuco state, Brazil. Biological samples of hands and nasal cavities were sown in agar sheep blood. Colonies under suspicion of being S. aureus were identified using Gram staining, catalase test and coagulase, mannitol-salty agar fermentation and DNAse agar. The resistance to mupirocin was analyzed through the Kirby Bauer technique. In relation to methicillin and vancomycin the determination was by the minimum inhibitory concentration method (E-test). From the 202 HCW evaluated, 52 were colonized by S. aureus (25,7 percent). The factors associated to the colonization by S. aureus were: age-group, professional category, use of individual protection equipments (frequency and numbers). All S. aureus isolate lineages were sensitive to mupirocin and vancomycin, and three of them were identified as methicillin-resistant. The prevalence of MSSA and MRSA among HCW was considered low and was below the results described in the literature. The isolate S. aureus lineages have shown low resistance profile.
Subject(s)
Adult , Female , Humans , Male , Young Adult , Anti-Bacterial Agents/pharmacology , Hand/microbiology , Nasal Cavity/microbiology , Personnel, Hospital , Staphylococcus aureus/isolation & purification , Brazil/epidemiology , Cross-Sectional Studies , Hospitals, University , Microbial Sensitivity Tests , Methicillin-Resistant Staphylococcus aureus/drug effects , Methicillin-Resistant Staphylococcus aureus/isolation & purification , Prevalence , Risk Factors , Staphylococcus aureus/drug effects , Young AdultABSTRACT
Na atualidade o gênero Staphylococcus abrange aproximadamente 42 espécies, sendo que destas, 20 são de interesse médico e veterinário, uma vez que, estão associadas a uma variedade de infecções oportunistas em seres humanos e animais. Dentre essas espécies causadoras de enfermidades, o Staphylococcus aureus requer especial atenção devido a seu alto potencial patogênico e também a sua capacidade de desenvolver resistência aos antimicrobianos utilizados rotineiramente na prática clínica, estando desta forma, associado a um amplo espectro de doenças que variam desde lesões cutâneas superficiais até infecções sistêmicas graves.