title: Low prevalence of methicillin-resistant Staphylococcus aureus nasal carriage in urban and rural community settings in Bolivia and Peru.
abstract: OBJECTIVE
  To investigate the prevalence of methicillin-resistant Staphylococcus aureus (MRSA) nasal carriage in rural and urban community settings of Bolivia and Peru.
  
  
  METHODS
  MRSA nasal carriage was investigated in 585 individuals living in rural and urban areas of Bolivia and Peru (one urban area, one small rural village, and two native communities, one of which was highly isolated). MRSA isolates were subjected to molecular analysis for the detection of virulence genes, characterization of the staphylococcal cassette chromosome mec (SCCmec), and genotyping (multilocus sequence typing (MLST) and pulsed-field gel electrophoresis (PFGE)).
  
  
  RESULTS
  An overall very low prevalence of MRSA nasal carriage was observed (0.5%), with MRSA carriers being detected only in a small rural village of the Bolivian Chaco. The three MRSA isolates showed the characteristics of community-associated MRSA (being susceptible to all non-beta-lactam antibiotics and harboring the SCCmec type IV), were clonally related, and belonged to ST1649.
  
  
  CONCLUSIONS
  This study provides an insight into the epidemiology of MRSA in community settings of Bolivia and Peru. Reliable, time-saving, and low-cost methods should be implemented to encourage continued surveillance of MRSA dissemination in resource-limited countries.
authors.affiliation: Dipartimento Area Critica Medico Chirurgica, Clinica Malattie Infettive, Università di Firenze, Ospedale di Careggi, Largo Brambilla 3, 50134, Florence, Italy. bartoloni@unifi.it
authors.forename: Alessandro
authors.initials: A
authors.lastname: Bartoloni
authors.forename: Lucia
authors.initials: L
authors.lastname: Pallecchi
authors.forename: Connie
authors.initials: C
authors.lastname: Fernandez
authors.forename: Antonia
authors.initials: A
authors.lastname: Mantella
authors.forename: Eleonora
authors.initials: E
authors.lastname: Riccobono
authors.forename: Donata
authors.initials: D
authors.lastname: Magnelli
authors.forename: Dario
authors.initials: D
authors.lastname: Mannini
authors.forename: Marianne
authors.initials: M
authors.lastname: Strohmeyer
authors.forename: Filippo
authors.initials: F
authors.lastname: Bartalesi
authors.forename: Higinio
authors.initials: H
authors.lastname: Segundo
authors.forename: Joaquin
authors.initials: J
authors.lastname: Monasterio
authors.forename: Hugo
authors.initials: H
authors.lastname: Rodriguez
authors.forename: César
authors.initials: C
authors.lastname: Cabezas
authors.forename: Eduardo
authors.initials: E
authors.lastname: Gotuzzo
authors.forename: Gian Maria
authors.initials: GM
authors.lastname: Rossolini
mesh_terms: D000900:Anti-Bacterial Agents / Q000494:pharmacology; D001838:Bolivia / Q000453:epidemiology; D002353:Carrier State / Q000453:epidemiology*; D002648:Child; D006801:Humans; D055624:Methicillin-Resistant Staphylococcus aureus / Q000187:drug effects / Q000235:genetics*; D008826:Microbial Sensitivity Tests; D008875:Middle Aged; D058885:Multilocus Sequence Typing; D009666:Nose / Q000382:microbiology*; D010568:Peru / Q000453:epidemiology; D015995:Prevalence; D012424:Rural Population; D014505:Urban Population
chemical_list: D000900:Anti-Bacterial Agents