title: Transmission of MRSA between companion animals and infected human patients presenting to outpatient medical care facilities.
abstract: Methicillin-resistant Staphylococcus aureus (MRSA) is a significant pathogen in both human and veterinary medicine. The importance of companion animals as reservoirs of human infections is currently unknown. The companion animals of 49 MRSA-infected outpatients (cases) were screened for MRSA carriage, and their bacterial isolates were compared with those of the infected patients using Pulsed-Field Gel Electrophoresis (PFGE). Rates of MRSA among the companion animals of MRSA-infected patients were compared to rates of MRSA among companion animals of pet guardians attending a "veterinary wellness clinic" (controls). MRSA was isolated from at least one companion animal in 4/49 (8.2%) households of MRSA-infected outpatients vs. none of the pets of the 50 uninfected human controls. Using PFGE, patient-pets MRSA isolates were identical for three pairs and discordant for one pair (suggested MRSA inter-specie transmission p-value = 0.1175). These results suggest that companion animals of MRSA-infected patients can be culture-positive for MRSA, representing a potential source of infection or re-infection for humans. Further studies are required to better understand the epidemiology of MRSA human-animal inter-specie transmission.
authors.affiliation: Department of Population Health and Pathobiology-PHP, North Carolina State University-NCSU College of Veterinary Medicine, Raleigh, North Carolina, United States of America. jmferrei@ncsu.edu
authors.forename: Jorge Pinto
authors.initials: JP
authors.lastname: Ferreira
authors.forename: Kevin L
authors.initials: KL
authors.lastname: Anderson
authors.forename: Maria T
authors.initials: MT
authors.lastname: Correa
authors.forename: Roberta
authors.initials: R
authors.lastname: Lyman
authors.forename: Felicia
authors.initials: F
authors.lastname: Ruffin
authors.forename: L Barth
authors.initials: LB
authors.lastname: Reller
authors.forename: Vance G
authors.initials: VG
authors.lastname: Fowler
mesh_terms: D000293:Adolescent; D000553:Ambulatory Care; D000818:Animals; D000829:Animals, Domestic; D002353:Carrier State / Q000382:microbiology / Q000635:transmission*; D016022:Case-Control Studies; D002371:Cat Diseases / Q000382:microbiology / Q000635:transmission*; D002415:Cats; D004269:DNA, Bacterial / Q000235:genetics; D004283:Dog Diseases / Q000382:microbiology / Q000635:transmission*; D004285:Dogs; D006801:Humans; D016106:Methicillin Resistance; D055624:Methicillin-Resistant Staphylococcus aureus / Q000235:genetics / Q000472:pathogenicity*; D013203:Staphylococcal Infections / Q000382:microbiology / Q000635:transmission*
chemical_list: D004269:DNA, Bacterial
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