title: Evolving EMRSA-15 epidemic in Singapore hospitals.
abstract: The aim of this study was to determine the extent of EMRSA-15 spread in hospitals in Singapore. Molecular analysis of 197 non-duplicate meticillin-resistant Staphylococcus aureus (MRSA) isolates collected from five acute care public hospitals in Singapore in May 2005 revealed that 66 (33.5%) were EMRSA-15 while 121 (61.4%) belonged to the endemic multidrug-resistant ST239 clone. Median and mode vancomycin MIC for both major clones of health-care-associated MRSA were relatively high at 2.0 microg ml-1. Subsequent laboratory surveillance data collected from the first half of 2006 confirmed increasing numbers of the EMRSA-15 clone--ranging from 25.0 to 66.1% of all MRSA isolated in local hospitals--replacing the ST239 clone island-wide.
authors.affiliation: Department of Medicine, Yong Loo Lin School of Medicine, National University of Singapore, 5 Lower Kent Ridge Road, Singapore 119074, Singapore.
authors.forename: Li-Yang
authors.initials: LY
authors.lastname: Hsu
authors.affiliation: Singapore General Hospital, Singapore.
authors.forename: Nidhi
authors.initials: N
authors.lastname: Loomba-Chlebicka
authors.affiliation: Singapore General Hospital, Singapore.
authors.forename: Yin-Ling
authors.initials: YL
authors.lastname: Koh
authors.affiliation: Changi General Hospital, Singapore.
authors.forename: Thean-Yen
authors.initials: TY
authors.lastname: Tan
authors.affiliation: Tan Tock Seng Hospital, Singapore.
authors.forename: Prabha
authors.initials: P
authors.lastname: Krishnan
authors.affiliation: National University Hospital, Singapore.
authors.forename: Raymond Tzer-Pin
authors.initials: RT
authors.lastname: Lin
authors.affiliation: Kandang Kerbau Women's and Children's Hospital, Singapore.
authors.forename: Nancy Wen-Sin
authors.initials: NW
authors.lastname: Tee
authors.affiliation: Department of Medicine, Yong Loo Lin School of Medicine, National University of Singapore, 5 Lower Kent Ridge Road, Singapore 119074, Singapore.
authors.forename: Dale Andrew
authors.initials: DA
authors.lastname: Fisher
authors.affiliation: Singapore General Hospital, Singapore.
authors.forename: Tse-Hsien
authors.initials: TH
authors.lastname: Koh
mesh_terms: D000900:Anti-Bacterial Agents / Q000494:pharmacology*; D016000:Cluster Analysis; D003428:Cross Infection / Q000453:epidemiology / Q000382:microbiology*; D004269:DNA, Bacterial / Q000235:genetics; D004196:Disease Outbreaks; D016521:Electrophoresis, Gel, Pulsed-Field; D019353:Endemic Diseases; D005838:Genotype; D006761:Hospitals; D006801:Humans; D016106:Methicillin Resistance; D017720:Molecular Epidemiology; D012091:Repetitive Sequences, Nucleic Acid / Q000235:genetics; D012846:Singapore / Q000453:epidemiology; D013203:Staphylococcal Infections / Q000453:epidemiology / Q000382:microbiology*; D013211:Staphylococcus aureus / Q000145:classification* / Q000187:drug effects / Q000235:genetics* / Q000302:isolation & purification; D014640:Vancomycin / Q000494:pharmacology
chemical_list: D000900:Anti-Bacterial Agents; D004269:DNA, Bacterial; D014640:Vancomycin