Molecular characterization of methicillin-resistant Staphylococcus aureus spread by neonates transferred from primary obstetrics clinics to a tertiary care hospital in Korea.
OBJECTIVE
To investigate the characteristics and origins of methicillin-resistant Staphylococcus aureus (MRSA) strains isolated from neonatal patients admitted to a tertiary care hospital from local and primary care obstetrics clinics.


METHODS
Molecular typing study.


METHODS
A 1,278-bed tertiary care hospital (Samsung Medical Center) and 2 primary obstetrics clinics in Seoul, Korea.


METHODS
The genotypic characteristics of 12 MRSA samples isolated from 11 neonatal patients transferred from 2 primary care obstetrics clinics to a tertiary care hospital were investigated by means of multilocus sequence typing, spa (staphylococcal protein A) typing, and SCCmec typing. Ten MRSA strains isolated from workers and environments in the associated obstetrics clinics were also investigated.


RESULTS
Although the antibiograms of isolates from 2 obstetrics clinics differed, no strain showed multidrug resistance to antimicrobials. Multilocus sequence typing analysis showed that all 22 MRSA isolates analyzed in this study had sequence type 1 (with the allelic profile 1-1-1-1-1-1-1), sequence type 493 (62-1-1-1-1-1-1), or a novel sequence type (25-1-1-1-1-1-1) and that all belonged to a single clonal complex (clonal complex 1). Moreover, they all contained SCCmec type IVA and the identical spa type (UJEBKBP). These genotypic characteristics are similar to those of typical community-associated MRSA strains rather than the hospital-acquired MRSA strains common in Korea.


CONCLUSIONS
The findings of this study suggest that community-acquired MRSA strains can spread in primary care clinics and be imported into tertiary care settings.
Ko
Kwan Soo
KS
Asian-Pacific Research Foundation for Infectious Diseases, Samsung Medical Center, Sungkyunkwan University School of Medicine, Seoul, Korea. krpeck@smc.samsung.co.kr
Park
Sulhee
S
Peck
Kyong Ran
KR
Shin
Eun Jung
EJ
Oh
Won Sup
WS
Lee
Nam Yong
NY
Song
Jae-Hoon
JH
D015373:Bacterial Typing Techniques / Q000379:methods; D017714:Community-Acquired Infections / Q000382:microbiology* / Q000635:transmission; D018562:Disease Transmission, Infectious; D005838:Genotype; D006282:Health Personnel; D006761:Hospitals / Q000706:statistics & numerical data; D006801:Humans; D007231:Infant, Newborn; D007723:Korea; D016106:Methicillin Resistance; D010360:Patient Transfer; D013203:Staphylococcal Infections / Q000382:microbiology* / Q000635:transmission; D013211:Staphylococcus aureus / Q000235:genetics / Q000302:isolation & purification*