 |
|
|
|
| STAPHYLOCOCCUS AUREUS IN DENMARK: SURVEILLIANCE, ANTIBIOTIC RESISTANCE AND TYPING |
Staphylococci are the predominant cause of hospital-acquired infections and the number of cases is increasing. The staphylococci can be subdivided as either Staphylococcus aureus or coagulase- negative staphylococci, where S. aureus are the most virulent ones.
S. aureus is carrired permanently by 20 % of the normal population, whereas 60 % are temporarily carriers and 20% remains non-carriers.
S. aureus may cause different kinds of infections in otherwise healthy people, such as skin infections, airway infections, infections in relation to foreign bodies, abscesses or bacteraemia.
In Denmark 1000- 1500 cases of S. aureus bacteraemia are registered every year, causing death in 20 % of the patients.
The emergence of multiresistant S. aureus resistant to methicillin (MRSA) and now perhaps also vancomycin (VRSA) causes severer difficulties in the treatment of those infections.
Increasing antibiotic resistance is a problem for all: From the infected patient responding poorly to treatment and to the hospital, which may perform infection control and prevention programmes.
In Denmark the problems regarding antibiotic resistance are still limited, mainly because of a restrictive policy for prescription of antibiotics. In this respect MRSA accounts for less than 1 % of all S. aureus bacteraemia in Denmark, whereas other European countries (Southern Europe and England) now report incidences above 30 %.
In order to maintain this low incidence of resistance in Denmark it is pivotal to make surveillance on staphylococci infections (sampling, typing, determination of antimicrobial resistance) and to help delimit outbreaks of MRSA inside and outside hospital settings.
From 1960- 1999 clinically and epidemiological informations from all patients with S. aureus bacteraemia in Denmark as well as other S. aureus infections, have been registered in the Staphylococcus laboratory at Statens Serum Institut.
Each isolate of S. aureus has been phage typed and its sensitivity to relevant antibiotics has been tested. Every year since 1960 the Staphylococcus laboratory has published the collected data in a rapport, which have been distributed to its collaborators.
In the year 2000 a decision to introduce a change in the yearly rapport was made based on an investigation showing that bacteraemia isolates from 1960 to 1999 gave a representative picture of the Danish staphylococcal situation compared to the picture given by the previous annual 20.000 isolates included in the annual report in the same period. The report “Phagetypes and resistance patterns in Staphylococcus aureus cases compared with all reported Staphylococcus aureus cases” is available here.
From 2000 and forward the annual report on the Danish staphylococcal situation will therefore be based on the bacteraemia material. In addition to data in the former reports (phage types and antibiotic resistance), the future bacteraemia reports will provide information also regarding mortality, age, sex, underlying diseases and secondary foci based on discharge summery from each patient with bacteraemia.
The annual reports on S. aureus bacteraemia cases are now placed in a printable PDF format from this page.
If you want to receive an email when the next annual reports are downloadable please register your email adress. |
|
|
|
|
|
|
|
|
|
