Proposal for common Nordic epidemiological terms and definitions for methicillin-resistant Staphylococcus aureus (MRSA).
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.
Skov
Robert
R
Statens Serum Institut, Copenhagen, Denmark. rsk@ssi.dk
Gudlaugsson
Olafur
O
Hardardottir
Hjordis
H
Harthug
Stig
S
Jakobsen
Trond
T
Kolmos
Hans Jørn
HJ
Olsson-Liljequist
Barbro
B
Peltonen
Reijo
R
Tveten
Yngvar
Y
Vuopio-Varkila
Jaana
J
Ahrén
Christina
C
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