Abstract

GONZALEZ MESA, Leonora et al. Frequency of methicilline-resistant Staphylococcus spp and vancomycin-resistant Enterococcus spp isolates in Cuban hospitals. Rev Cubana Farm [online]. 2005, vol.39, n.3, pp. 0-0. ISSN 1561-2988.

Resistance to methicilline in Staphylococcus spp genus is a growing problem worldwide. The production of an altered penicillin-fixing protein with low mecA gen-mediated affinity to beta-lactams is responsible for this resistance. Although Staphylococcus spp still remain susceptible to vancomycin, some Enterococcus spp have acquired the capacity of neutralizing this drug. In Cuba , there was no updated data either on the rate of infection by methicilline-resistant Staphylococcus spp or on the circulation of this germ in the community; neither are there reports on vancomycin-resistant Enterococcus spp presence. In this study, 774 strains collected from hospitals in the country were analyzed. The mechanism of resistance was determined by the methods suggested in the NCCLS guidelines. The 9.3 % (23) and 4.0 % (7) of S. aureus isolates from the hospitals and the community respectively were methicilline-resistant carriers of mecA gen whereas 69.9 %(72) of negative Staphylococcus coagulase isolates showed resistance to oxacillin. Also, a vancomycin-resistant Enterococcus spp-carrying strain was detected. Our results revealed that in Cuba the methicilline-resistant S. aureus is not a problem neither at hospitals nor at the community setting. Despite the fact that the circulation of these germs in the community setting and also the circulation of vancomycin-resistant Enterococcus spp at hospital setting have been reported for the first time, their frequency is very low as a consequence of the advances in the implementation of policies aimed at a more rational use and consumption of antibiotics.

Keywords : Staphylococcus spp; Enterococcus spp; multiresistance; mecA gen; rational use of antibiotics.

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