Nasal and Cutaneous Carriage of Staphylococcus aureus in Hemodialysis Patients: The Effect of Nasal Mupirocin

Abstract

Fifteen of 20 hemodialysis patients who carried Staphylococcus aureus in their nares also carried the organism on their hands; 2 of 20 patients who did not carry S aureus in their nares carried S aureus on their hands (P < .001). Eighty-seven percent of patients who carried S aureus in their nares and on their hands carried the same strain at both sites. Intranasal mupirocin eliminated S aureus from both sites.

The Effect of a Scenario based Hand Hygiene Education Program on Hand Hygiene Knowledge, Hand Hygiene Perception, Hand Hygiene Compliance and Hand Hygiene Method in Nursing Students^*

“…present on intact areas of the skin of certain patients can vary from 100 to 10 6 /cm 2 (25,29,31,33). Persons with diabetes, patients undergoing dialysis for chronic renal failure, and those with chronic dermatitis are likely to have areas of intact skin that are colonized with S. aureus (34)(35)(36)(37)(38)(39)(40)(41). Because approximately 10 6 skin squames containing viable microorganisms are shed daily from normal skin (42), patient gowns, bed linen, bedside furniture, and other objects in the patient's immediate environment can easily become contaminated with patient flora (30,(43)(44)(45)(46).…”

Nasal Staphylococcus aureus Carriage Is Not a Risk Factor for Lower-Airway Infection in Young Cystic Fibrosis Patients

“…If the anterior nares were treated locally, the organism also disappeared from other sites of the body in most cases (15). Mupirocin, a natural antibiotic derived from Pseudomonas fluorescens (9), has been used in patients undergoing dialysis or orthopedic or open heart surgery, revealing a significant reduction of S. aureus infections in patients treated topically compared to untreated patients (1,3,7,13).…”

Hand Hygiene

“…86,88,92,98 Diabetics, patients undergoing dialysis for chronic renal failure, and those with chronic dermatitis are particularly likely to have skin areas colonized with S. aureus. [99][100][101][102][103][104][105][106] . Because nearly 10 6 skin squames containing viable microorganisms are shed daily from normal skin, 107 it is not surprising that patient gowns, bed linen, bedside furniture and other objects in the immediate environment of the patient become contaminated with patient flora.…”