Staphylococcus Research Today is a free monthly online journal that collates and summarizes the latest research about Staphylococcus, including details on mrsa, hospitals, infection, antibiotic resistance, superbugs.

PVL-positive MRSA in Austria.

Krziwanek K, Luger C, Sammer B, Stumvoll S, Stammler M, Metz-Gercek S, Mittermayer H

National Reference Centre for Nosocomial Infections and Antibiotic Resistance, Department of Hygiene, Microbiology and Tropical Medicine, Elisabethinen Hospital, Fadingerstrasse 1, Linz, Austria. karina.krziwanek@elisabethinen.or.at

The objective of this study was to present, for the first time, an overview of the existing Panton-Valentine leukocidin (PVL)-positive methicillin-resistant Staphylococcus aureus (MRSA) strains in Austria and to compare the situation with that found in other countries. Between 2001 and 2006 we analysed 1150 MRSA isolates - from infections as well as from colonisation - for the presence of PVL genes. The most common multilocus sequence types of the 94 PVL-positive MRSA strains were ST8, ST152, ST30, ST80, and ST5; the ST22, and ST777 sequences were also detected. During 2005 and 2006, 3.7-7.7% of the isolates were PVL-positive. The age distribution of the patients revealed that nosocomial MRSA mainly occurs in elderly people, whereas PVL-positive MRSA mainly appears in younger people. We observed a relatively high prevalence of PVL-positive isolates. Several MRSA clones containing the PVL genes are spreading throughout Austria, including two strains not yet widespread in Western Europe.

Published 8 November 2007 in Eur J Clin Microbiol Infect Dis, 26(12): 931-5.
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