Methicillin-resistant Staphylococcus aureus: an overview of basic and clinical research - Nature Reviews Microbiology

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• Risk of MRSA infection is elevated among children, elderly individuals, athletes, military personnel, individuals who inject drugs, persons with an indigenous background or in urban, underserved areas, individuals with HIV or cystic fibrosis, those with frequent health-care contact and those in institutionalized populations, including prisoners

• first reports of MRSA in 1961

• Fig. 2: Global distribution and diversity of methicillin-resistant Staphylococcus aureus.

• The map provides an overview of strain diversity and cannot comprehensively display all relevant strain types within each region.

• Elevated risk of colonization mirrors risk of infection as noted above: athletes, those in prisons, military recruits, children, persons in urban, underserved areas, individuals with an indigenous background, pet owners, livestock workers, individuals with prior MRSA infection, individuals with HIV or cystic fibrosis and individuals with frequent health-care contact are all at increased risk of MRSA colonization

• Recent receipt of antibiotics has also been associated with elevated risk of MRSA carriage

• Although rates vary by study, colonizing strains genetically match infecting strains in as many as 50–80% of individuals, and MRSA colonization may increase infection risk by as much as 25%

• Fig. 3: Methicillin-resistant Staphylococcus aureus colonization.

• a | Impact of methicillin-resistant Staphylococcus aureus (MRSA) colonization on hospital-acquired infection and community transmission.

• nfection prevention measures, including screening, contact isolation and good hand-hygiene practices, show mixed results when applied individually but have reduced infection rates as much as 40–60% when combined

• Treatment

• Skin and soft tissue infection

• MRSA is formidable, versatile and unpredictable.