Methicillin-resistant Staphylococcus aureus in Canadian aboriginal people.
We describe 279 hospitalized Canadian aboriginals in whom methicillin-resistant Staphylococcus aureus (MRSA) was detected. They were identified in 38 Canadian hospitals from 1995 through 2002. Compared with nonaboriginals, aboriginals were more likely to be younger than 18 years of age (OR, 1.8; P<.0001), to have had an MRSA infection (OR, 3.8; P<.0001), and to have had MRSA isolated from specimens of skin or soft tissue (OR, 4.1; P=.016). The clinical features of MRSA infection in aboriginals are distinct from those in the general patient population with MRSA infection in Canadian hospitals, and the genetic background of MRSA isolates from aboriginals also varies from that of strains from the non-aboriginal population.
Ofner-Agostini
Marianna
M
Centre for Infectious Disease Prevention and Control, Public Health Agency of Canada, Ottawa, Ontario, Canada.
Simor
Andrew E
AE
Mulvey
Michael
M
Bryce
Elizabeth
E
Loeb
Mark
M
McGeer
Allison
A
Kiss
Alex
A
Paton
Shirley
S
D000293:Adolescent; D000328:Adult; D002170:Canada; D017714:Community-Acquired Infections; D005260:Female; D006801:Humans; D008297:Male; D016106:Methicillin Resistance; D044382:Population Groups; D011159:Population Surveillance; D013203:Staphylococcal Infections / Q000453:epidemiology*; D013211:Staphylococcus aureus / Q000187:drug effects / Q000472:pathogenicity*