ABSTRACT
OBJECTIVE: To determine the prevalence of carriers of methicillin-resistant Staphylococcus aureus (MRSA), vancomycin-resistant enterococci (VRE) and gentamicin-resistant Gram-negative bacilli (GGNB) in patients repatriated from foreign hospitals to The Netherlands. DESIGN: Determination of prevalence. METHOD: In the period May 1998-August 2001, 1167 patients were repatriated. Swab specimens, demographic data and clinical data were obtained during the transfer. RESULTS: The prevalence of carriers of resistant microorganisms was 18.2%. MRSA was carried by 2.7% of the total repatriated group and by 4.7% of patients transferred to a Dutch hospital. Risk factors were antimicrobial treatment (odds ratio (OR): 3.4; 95% CI: 1.2-9.7), length of stay in a foreign hospital > or = 14 days (OR: 5.4; 95% CI: 2.3-12) and artificial ventilation (OR: 8.5; 95% CI: 1.8-41). VRE and GGNB were isolated from 2.7% and 14.1% of patients, respectively. Transfer from Asia or southern, south-eastern and eastern Europe were risk factors for carrying GGNB. CONCLUSION: Carriership of resistant microorganisms was high among repatriated patients. The highest risk of GGNB was more closely associated with the country from which the patient was transferred than the antimicrobial treatment received in the foreign hospital.
Subject(s)
Carrier State/epidemiology , Cross Infection/epidemiology , Drug Resistance, Bacterial , Enterococcus/drug effects , Gram-Negative Bacteria/drug effects , Staphylococcus aureus/drug effects , Carrier State/microbiology , Cross Infection/microbiology , Disease Reservoirs , Female , Gentamicins/pharmacology , Hospitalization , Humans , Length of Stay , Male , Methicillin Resistance , Netherlands/epidemiology , Prevalence , Risk Factors , Vancomycin ResistanceABSTRACT
In a prospective survey conducted between May 1998 and September 2001, the prevalence of carriage of methicillin-resistant Staphylococcus aureus (MRSA), vancomycin-resistant enterococci (VRE) and gentamicin-resistant Gram-negative bacilli (GGNB) was determined in 1167 patients repatriated from foreign hospitals to The Netherlands. Swab specimens, demographic data and clinical data were obtained during transfer of the patients from the foreign hospitals. The total prevalence of carriage of resistant microorganisms was 18.2%. MRSA was carried by 2.7% of all patients, and by 4.7% of the patients repatriated to a Dutch hospital. Antimicrobial treatment (adjusted odds ratio (OR) 3.4; 95% confidence interval (CI) 1.2-9.7), length of stay in a foreign hospital of > 14 days (adjusted OR 5.4; 95% CI 2.3-12) and artificial ventilation (adjusted OR 8.5; 95% CI 1.8-41) were risk factors for carriage of MRSA. VRE and GGNB were isolated from 2.7% and 14.1% of the patients, respectively. Transfer from Asia, and southern, southeastern and eastern Europe, were risk factors for carriage of GGNB. These carriage rates were high compared to those found in patients in Dutch hospitals, where the rates are < 1% for MRSA, 2% for VRE, and 4.5% for GGNB. The highest risk of acquisition of GGNB was associated with the country from where the patient was repatriated, rather than with the antimicrobial treatment received by the individual patient in the foreign hospital.
