title: Outbreak of multiresistant non-encapsulated Haemophilus influenzae infections in a pulmonary rehabilitation centre.
abstract: 15 out of 21 patients admitted to a pulmonary rehabilitation centre were infected with a non-encapsulated strain of Haemophilus influenzae. All isolates showed identical outer membrane protein patterns, harboured a 40 MD plasmid, produced beta-lactamase, and were resistant to amoxycillin, co-trimoxazole, chloramphenicol, and tetracycline. The strain was first isolated from sputum of another 3 patients in the same hospital ward. 2 of them later introduced it into the rehabilitation centre. The strain spread among the other patients over the next 2 months. The absence of a common iatrogenic source of the organism and its slow spread indicate that the most likely means of transmission was person to person.
authors.affiliation: Department of Medical Microbiology, St Laurentius Hospital, Roermond, Netherlands.
authors.forename: A W
authors.initials: AW
authors.lastname: Sturm
authors.forename: R
authors.initials: R
authors.lastname: Mostert
authors.forename: P J
authors.initials: PJ
authors.lastname: Rouing
authors.forename: B
authors.initials: B
authors.lastname: van Klingeren
authors.forename: L
authors.initials: L
authors.lastname: van Alphen
mesh_terms: D000328:Adult; D000368:Aged; D000369:Aged, 80 and over; D004196:Disease Outbreaks / Q000706:statistics & numerical data*; D004352:Drug Resistance, Microbial; D005260:Female; D006192:Haemophilus Infections / Q000453:epidemiology* / Q000382:microbiology; D006193:Haemophilus influenzae / Q000187:drug effects / Q000302:isolation & purification; D006801:Humans; D015994:Incidence; D008171:Lung Diseases / Q000534:rehabilitation; D008297:Male; D008875:Middle Aged; D009426:Netherlands; D011446:Prospective Studies; D012047:Rehabilitation Centers; D013045:Species Specificity; D013183:Sputum / Q000382:microbiology