Isolation and screening of methicillin-resistant Staphylococcus aureus from health care workers in Libyan hospitals

Abstract

This is the largest Libyan study to date to investigate the prevalence and antimicrobial susceptibility of methicillin-resistant Staphylococcus aureus [‎MRSA]‎ among health care workers in Tripoli, Libya. A total of 569 doctors and nurses from 4 main hospitals were screened for MRSA with specimens collected from the anterior nares. Isolates from 109 of the 569 subjects [‎19%]‎ were confirmed as MRSA by polymerase chain reaction assay; the majority [‎98/109]‎ were from a general hospital. Antimicrobial resistance patterns tested by disk diffusion were as follows: erythromycin [‎74%]‎, ciprofloxacin [‎77%]‎, clindamycin [‎20%]‎, trimethoprim/sulfamethoxazole [‎50%]‎, quinuprisin/dalfopristin [‎19%]‎, vancomycin [‎12%]‎ and mupirocin [‎5%]‎. Eighteen isolates exhibited macrolide-lincosamide-streptogramin B resistance [‎MLSB]‎: 6 were MLSBi and 12 were MLSBc The results provide evidence that Libyan health care workers could serve as MRSA carriers and play a role in the dissemination of MRSA to the public and other workers