Polymerase chain reaction fingerprints of methicillin-resistant Staphylococcus aureus clinical isolates in Greece are related to certain antibiotypes.

Characterization of clinical isolates of methicillin-resistant Staphylococcus aureus (MRSA) and representatives of three MRSA clones from other hospitals was performed by arbitrarily primed polymerase chain reaction (AP-PCR) and antibiotic susceptibility patterns. All isolates were mecA-positive and two main antibiotypes have been characterized. Two major clones were identified with AP-PCR related to the aforementioned antibiotypes. The combination of antibiotypes with AP-PCR patterns successfully identified the two major clones in our hospital, which are identical with the MRSA clones previously characterized in Athens and in Central and North Greece.