Molecular epidemiology of methicillin-resistant Staphylococcus aureus isolates from regional hospitals in Trinidad and Tobago. 2007

Patrick E Akpaka, and Shivnarine Kissoon, and Candy Rutherford, and William H Swanston, and Padman Jayaratne
Department of Paraclinical Sciences, Faculty of Medical Sciences, The University of the West Indies, St. Augustine, Trinidad and Tobago. peakpaka@yahoo.co.uk

OBJECTIVE Methicillin-resistant Staphylococcus aureus (MRSA), first reported in a British hospital in the early 1960s, has now reached global proportions. Geographic spread of one or several MRSA clones in a city, country, and even among countries and continents has been identified by molecular techniques. We sought to determine whether clonal spread of MRSA has occurred in Trinidad and Tobago from all MRSA isolates collected between 2000 and 2001. METHODS Clinical isolates of MRSA from three major hospitals in Trinidad and Tobago were identified by standard laboratory methods and analyzed using multiplex polymerase chain reaction (PCR) and pulsed-field gel electrophoresis (PFGE) after SmaI digestion. RESULTS There was a 12.8% prevalence of MRSA in three major regional hospitals in Trinidad and Tobago. All 60 randomly selected MRSA strains from these hospitals produced similar PFGE banding patterns, suggesting a genetic relatedness among strains and that they belonged to a single clonal family. All isolates were negative for the Panton-Valentine leukocidin gene (pvl). These strains shared a PFGE banding pattern approximately (96%) the same as a Canadian strain called CMRSA-6 in the Canadian National Microbiology Laboratory database. CONCLUSIONS We conclude that only one major PFGE genotype of MRSA clone is circulating among the three major regional hospitals in Trinidad and Tobago suggesting one of three possible scenarios of microevolution: (1) all were from the dissemination of a single epidemic MRSA clone prevailing in these hospitals in Trinidad and Tobago; or (2) MRSA in Trinidad and Tobago is evolving more slowly than in other countries; or (3) that if other MRSA clones have been present in Trinidad and Tobago, they have not persisted.

UI MeSH Term Description Entries
D006761 Hospitals Institutions with an organized medical staff which provide medical care to patients. Hospital
D006801 Humans Members of the species Homo sapiens. Homo sapiens,Man (Taxonomy),Human,Man, Modern,Modern Man
D013203 Staphylococcal Infections Infections with bacteria of the genus STAPHYLOCOCCUS. Infections, Staphylococcal,Staphylococcus aureus Infection,Staphylococcal Infection,Staphylococcus aureus Infections
D013211 Staphylococcus aureus Potentially pathogenic bacteria found in nasal membranes, skin, hair follicles, and perineum of warm-blooded animals. They may cause a wide range of infections and intoxications.
D014300 Trinidad and Tobago An independent state in the Lesser Antilles in the West Indies, north of Venezuela, comprising the islands of Trinidad and Tobago. Its capital is Port of Spain. Both islands were discovered by Columbus in 1498. The Spanish, English, Dutch, and French figure in their history over four centuries. Trinidad and Tobago united in 1898 and were made part of the British colony of Trinidad and Tobago in 1899. The colony became an independent state in 1962. Trinidad was so named by Columbus either because he arrived on Trinity Sunday or because three mountain peaks suggested the Holy Trinity. Tobago was given the name by Columbus from the Haitian tambaku, pipe, from the natives' habit of smoking tobacco leaves. (Webster's New Geographical Dictionary, 1988, p1228, 1216 & Room, Brewer's Dictionary of Names, 1992, p555, 547) Tobago,Trinidad
D016106 Methicillin Resistance Non-susceptibility of a microbe to the action of METHICILLIN, a semi-synthetic penicillin derivative. Methicillin-Resistant,Methicillin Resistant,Resistance, Methicillin
D017720 Molecular Epidemiology The application of molecular biology to the answering of epidemiological questions. The examination of patterns of changes in DNA to implicate particular carcinogens and the use of molecular markers to predict which individuals are at highest risk for a disease are common examples. Epidemiology, Molecular,Genetic Epidemiology,Epidemiologies, Genetic,Epidemiologies, Molecular,Epidemiology, Genetic,Genetic Epidemiologies,Molecular Epidemiologies

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