title: Proposal for common Nordic epidemiological terms and definitions for methicillin-resistant Staphylococcus aureus (MRSA).
abstract: The recent increase in the incidence of methicillin-resistant Staphylococcus aureus in all the Nordic countries prompted the Scandinavian Society for Antimicrobial Chemotherapy (SSAC) to create the 'SSAC Working Party on MRSA' with the objective to identify methods to keep the invasive MRSA infections in the Nordic countries below 1%. The lack of common definitions was recognized as a major obstacle for a joint Nordic effort to combat MRSA. The aim of this publication is to present proposals for epidemiological definitions of individual cases, for how to report MRSA frequency per country, and for communication of MRSA strain characteristics between the countries.
authors.affiliation: Statens Serum Institut, Copenhagen, Denmark. rsk@ssi.dk
authors.forename: Robert
authors.initials: R
authors.lastname: Skov
authors.forename: Olafur
authors.initials: O
authors.lastname: Gudlaugsson
authors.forename: Hjordis
authors.initials: H
authors.lastname: Hardardottir
authors.forename: Stig
authors.initials: S
authors.lastname: Harthug
authors.forename: Trond
authors.initials: T
authors.lastname: Jakobsen
authors.forename: Hans Jørn
authors.initials: HJ
authors.lastname: Kolmos
authors.forename: Barbro
authors.initials: B
authors.lastname: Olsson-Liljequist
authors.forename: Reijo
authors.initials: R
authors.lastname: Peltonen
authors.forename: Yngvar
authors.initials: Y
authors.lastname: Tveten
authors.forename: Jaana
authors.initials: J
authors.lastname: Vuopio-Varkila
authors.forename: Christina
authors.initials: C
authors.lastname: Ahrén
mesh_terms: D003140:Communicable Disease Control / Q000592:standards*; D004812:Epidemiologic Methods; D005060:Europe / Q000453:epidemiology; D006801:Humans; D016106:Methicillin Resistance; D013203:Staphylococcal Infections / Q000453:epidemiology* / Q000382:microbiology*; D013211:Staphylococcus aureus / Q000187:drug effects* / Q000302:isolation & purification