Evidence map›Paper›PMID 36604672›Full record

ArticleAntimicrobial resistance and infection control2023

A pseudo-outbreak of MRSA due to laboratory contamination related to MRSA carriage of a laboratory staff member.

Karlijn M G Houkes, Joep J J M Stohr, Karin B Gast, Karen Couderé, Veronica Weterings, Anne Mutsaers-van Oudheusden, Anton G M Buiting, Jaco J Verweij

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Article in Antimicrobial resistance and infection control, 2023. The graph could read no effect estimate from its abstract, so it casts no vote on the map. Cited by 1 paper.

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1citing papers in PubMed
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1 · What the graph read from it

What it found

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2 · The registry

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3 · Its place in the literature

Who cites it

1 citing paper in PubMed.

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4 · The record

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5 · Who and what money

Authors and funding

8 authors.

Karlijn M G HoukesMicrovida, Laboratory of Medical Microbiology and Immunology, Elisabeth-TweeSteden Hospital, Tilburg, The Netherlands. k.houkes@etz.nl.
Joep J J M StohrMicrovida, Laboratory of Medical Microbiology and Immunology, Elisabeth-TweeSteden Hospital, Tilburg, The Netherlands.
Karin B GastMicrovida, Laboratory of Medical Microbiology and Immunology, Elisabeth-TweeSteden Hospital, Tilburg, The Netherlands.
Karen CouderéMicrovida, Laboratory of Medical Microbiology and Immunology, Elisabeth-TweeSteden Hospital, Tilburg, The Netherlands.
Veronica WeteringsDepartment of Infection Prevention, Amphia Hospital, Breda, The Netherlands.
Anne Mutsaers-van OudheusdenDepartment of Infection Prevention, Elisabeth-TweeSteden Hospital, Tilburg, the Netherlands.
Anton G M BuitingMicrovida, Laboratory of Medical Microbiology and Immunology, Elisabeth-TweeSteden Hospital, Tilburg, The Netherlands.
Jaco J VerweijMicrovida, Laboratory of Medical Microbiology and Immunology, Elisabeth-TweeSteden Hospital, Tilburg, The Netherlands.

Funding

No grant is acknowledged in the PubMed record.

6 · The paper itself

Abstract

backgroundMethicillin resistant Staphylococcus aureus (MRSA) is a major burden for hospitals globally. However, in the Netherlands, the MRSA prevalence is relatively low due to the 'search and destroy' policy. Routine multiple-locus variable-number of tandem repeat analysis (MLVA) of MRSA isolates supports outbreak detection. However, whole genome multiple locus sequence typing (wgMLST) is superior to MLVA in identifying (pseudo-)outbreaks with MRSA. The present study describes a pseudo-outbreak of MRSA at the bacteriology laboratory of a large Dutch teaching hospital.

methodsAll staff members of the bacteriology laboratory of the Elisabeth-TweeSteden hospital were screened for MRSA carriage, after a laboratory contamination with MRSA was suspected. Clonal relatedness between the index isolate and the MRSA isolates from laboratory staff members and all previous MRSA isolates from the Elisabeth-TweeSteden hospital with the same MLVA-type as the index case was examined based on wgMLST using whole genome sequencing.

resultsOne of the staff members was identified as the probable source of the laboratory contamination, because of carriage of a MRSA possessing the same MLVA-type as the index case. Eleven other isolates with the same molecular characteristics were found in the database, of which seven were retrospectively suspected of contamination. Clonal relatedness was found between ten isolates, including the isolate found in the staff member and the MRSA found in the index patient with a maximum of eleven alleles difference. All isolates were epidemiologically linked through the laboratory staff member, who had worked on all these cultures.

conclusionsThe present study describes a MRSA pseudo-outbreak over a 2.5-year period due to laboratory contamination caused by a MRSA carrying laboratory staff member involving nine patients. In case of unexpected bacteriological findings, the possibility of a laboratory contamination should be considered.

Indexed as

Methicillin-Resistant Staphylococcus aureusStaphylococcal InfectionsDisease OutbreaksHumansNetherlandsRetrospective StudiesContaminationMRSAPseudo-outbreakwgMLST

Identifiers

PMID36604672
PMCPMC9814305

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