title: Higher prevalence of pharyngeal than nasal Staphylococcus aureus carriage in pediatric intensive care units.
abstract: Sensitive detection of Staphylococcus aureus colonization is important for epidemiologic studies, infection control, and decolonization measures. We examined the sensitivity of nasal and pharyngeal sampling for S. aureus colonization in 331 children admitted to intensive care units. Pharyngeal screening was more sensitive than nasal screening (92.6% versus 63.1%, P < 0.0001).
authors.affiliation: Division of Infectious Diseases, Department of Medicine, Children's Hospital Boston, Boston, MA, USA. mari.nakamura@childrens.harvard.edu
authors.forename: Mari M
authors.initials: MM
authors.lastname: Nakamura
authors.forename: Alexander J
authors.initials: AJ
authors.lastname: McAdam
authors.forename: Thomas J
authors.initials: TJ
authors.lastname: Sandora
authors.forename: Katharina R
authors.initials: KR
authors.lastname: Moreira
authors.forename: Grace M
authors.initials: GM
authors.lastname: Lee
mesh_terms: D000293:Adolescent; D001431:Bacteriological Techniques / Q000379:methods*; D002353:Carrier State / Q000175:diagnosis* / Q000382:microbiology; D002648:Child; D002675:Child, Preschool; D006801:Humans; D007223:Infant; D007231:Infant, Newborn; D015278:Intensive Care Units, Pediatric; D009666:Nose / Q000382:microbiology*; D010614:Pharynx / Q000382:microbiology*; D015995:Prevalence; D012680:Sensitivity and Specificity; D013203:Staphylococcal Infections / Q000175:diagnosis* / Q000382:microbiology; D013211:Staphylococcus aureus / Q000302:isolation & purification*