title: Methicillin-resistant Staphylococcus aureus in resident animals of a long-term care facility.
abstract: Animals provide benefits to elderly and chronically ill people by decreasing loneliness, increasing social interactions, and improving mental health. As a result, many hospitals and long-term care facilities allow family pets to visit ill or convalescing patients or support animal-assisted therapy programs. These include programs that have resident animals in long-term care facilities. Despite the benefits, there are concerns about disease transmission between pets and patients. Antibiotic-resistant bacteria, such as methicillin-resistant Staphylococcus aureus (MRSA), are a recognized problem in healthcare settings leading to refractory infections and potentially life-threatening illnesses. MRSA has been isolated from numerous animal species, yet few studies are available on the carriage of this pathogen in animals residing in long-term care facilities. Our objective was to characterize MRSA carriage among resident animals in a long-term care facility.
  
  
  METHODS
  To document MRSA colonization, nasal swabs from 12 resident animals (one dogs and 11 cats) of a long-term care facility were collected weekly for 8 weeks. Staphylococcus isolates were characterized by antimicrobial susceptibility and MRSA isolates were further characterized by pulsed-field gel electrophoresis (PFGE). PFGE isolate patterns were compared with an existing database of MRSA isolate patterns at the Minnesota Department of Health.
  
  
  RESULTS
  Two of 11 cats were colonized with MRSA. MRSA was recovered from five of eight weekly samples in one cat and two of eight weekly samples in the other cat. All isolates were classified as USA100 (healthcare-associated strains).
  
  
  CONCLUSIONS
  Long-term care resident animals may acquire MRSA. Clonally related strains were identified over the 8-week sampling period. It is unclear if pets serve as an on-going source of infection to their human companions in long-term care facilities.
authors.affiliation: Veterinary Public Health, University of Minnesota, St Paul, MN 55108, USA.
authors.forename: K
authors.initials: K
authors.lastname: Coughlan
authors.forename: K E
authors.initials: KE
authors.lastname: Olsen
authors.forename: D
authors.initials: D
authors.lastname: Boxrud
authors.forename: J B
authors.initials: JB
authors.lastname: Bender
mesh_terms: D000368:Aged; D000818:Animals; D002353:Carrier State / Q000453:epidemiology / Q000382:microbiology; D002371:Cat Diseases / Q000382:microbiology / Q000635:transmission; D002415:Cats; D004283:Dog Diseases / Q000382:microbiology / Q000635:transmission; D004285:Dogs; D016521:Electrophoresis, Gel, Pulsed-Field; D006707:Homes for the Aged / Q000706:statistics & numerical data*; D006801:Humans; D008134:Long-Term Care; D055624:Methicillin-Resistant Staphylococcus aureus / Q000187:drug effects / Q000302:isolation & purification*; D009296:Nasal Cavity / Q000382:microbiology; D012112:Residential Facilities / Q000706:statistics & numerical data*; D012307:Risk Factors; D013203:Staphylococcal Infections / Q000188:drug therapy / Q000453:epidemiology* / Q000382:microbiology