Prevalence and antimicrobial susceptibility patterns of Staphylococcus aureus/methicillin-resistant Staphylococcus aureus nasal carriage among Kabul University students

Abstract

Nasal carriage of Staphylococcus aureus/Methicillin-resistant Staphylococcus aureus (S. aureus/MRSA) poses a major risk for the transmission and infection of this pathogen especially in hospital setting. The main objective of this study was to investigate the colonization of S. aureus/MRSA among healthy individuals and determine their susceptibility patterns to common antibiotics in Kabul. A total of 150 healthy participants have been included and nasal swabs were collected from all. Samples were cultured on appropriate and selective media for proper identification of S. aureus. Antibiotic susceptibility profiles were determined by the disc diffusion method and interpreted according to the Clinical & Laboratory Standards Institute (CLSI) protocols. The prevalence of S. aureus nasal colonization was 33.3% with 12.7% MRSA nasal carriage. The prevalence of S. aureus/MRSA colonization was not statistically significant according to gender (p=0.84) and age (0.18). All MRSA isolates were sensitive to rifampicin, linezolid and acid fusidic. Thirty-two percent of the S. aureus isolates were multi-drug resistant. Multi-drug resistance varied from resistance to at least three classes of antibiotics (14%) to maximum six classes of antibiotics (4%). This study revealed a high prevalence of S. aureus/MRSA nasal carriage among healthy individuals when compared to similar studies conducted elsewhere and is a reason of concern. Identifying and treating MRSA carriers, as well as responsible use of antibiotics is recommended.

Nasal carriage rate, associated factors, and antimicrobial susceptibility patterns of methicillin resistance Staphylococcus aureus among pre-clinical undergraduate students at the College of Health and Medical Sciences, Haramaya University, Ethiopia

“…A total of 7.9 and 5.6% of the students were 23–27 and 18–22 years old, respectively ( p = 0.579). It is consistent with past findings by Naimi et al ( 2 ) and Legese et al ( 17 ). These indicate that gender and age were not associated factors in the acquisition of MRSA infections.…”

“…The incidence of MRSA nasal carriage was greater in female students than in male students in our study, but the difference was not statistically significant (p = 0.758). This is following an earlier study among clinical samples of S. aureus in Ethiopia ( 17) and other findings conducted by healthy students in Iraq (25) and Afghanistan (2), which shows that gender was not found to be a risk factor for MRSA infection. Additionally, nasal carriage of MRSA was studied in two age groups: 18-22 years and 23-27 years.…”

“…Data on socio-demographic, behavioral features, clinical information, and associated factors were collected using a structured, pretested questionnaire that was developed after a review of a variety of literature sources ( 2 , 15 , 17 , 27 ) through oral interviews of study participants, and nasal swabs were taken from the anterior nares using a sterile cotton-tipped applicator stick saturated with sterile normal saline. The specimens were transported for microbiological analysis to the microbiology laboratory at Haramaya University CHMS within 30 min of collection ( 28 ).…”

“…The MRSA strains are typically spread through direct skin-to-skin contact and can occur in shared public areas such as dorms, gyms, and barracks (10,11), causing community-acquired infections. According to reports, the chance of contracting MRSA might increase by 7.5 times when one is close to someone who has previously been colonized or infected (2,7,12,13). MRSA infections have increased in people who have not been exposed to healthcare settings since the 1990s.…”

“…Staphylococcus aureus is a prevalent bacterium that frequently causes nosocomial infections and public health issues ( 1 , 2 ). Methicillin-resistant Staphylococcus aureus (MRSA) is now the main source of community-acquired infections among individuals who have not been exposed to healthcare environments ( 3 ).…”