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The 130th Annual Meeting of APHA |
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The 130th Annual Meeting of APHA |
Rosa V. Rosario-Rosado, MS, Department of Epidemiology, University of North Texas Health Science Center, 3500 Camp Bowie Boulevard, Fort Worth, TX 76107-2699, 817-735-0327, rrosario_rosado@hotmail.com, Bobby Jones, DVM, MPH, Division of Epidemiology and Health Information, Tarrant County Public Health Department, 1800 University Drive, Fort Worth, TX 76107, and Antonio A. Rene, PhD, MPH, Public Health, University of North Texas School of Public Health, 3500 Camp Bowie, Fort Worth, TX 76107.
During the past years nosocomial infections, like Methicillin-Resistant Staphylococcus aureus (MRSA), have been recognized as an important health problem in United States. Recently the scientific literature has documented the emergence of MRSA as a community-acquired (CA) infection. A comparative analysis permitted us to contrast Community (CA) vs. Hospital (HA) acquired cases considering important socio-demographic and clinical variables. Chi-square and independent sample t-tests were used in the data analysis. Odds Ratios and 95% Confidence Intervals were computed to evaluate the association between the source of acquisition and the susceptibility to antibiotics. Epi-Info 6.04d (CDC) and SPSS-PC 10 (SPSS Inc., 1999) were used for data entry and analysis. A total of 367 cases with laboratory confirmed infection were identified among the non-prisoner population at a Dallas-Fort Worth Metroplex Community Hospital between January 2000 and June 2001. Eighty-one percent of the cases were CA and 19% were hospital-acquired (HA). CA cases were significantly younger (p=0.002) than the HA cases. Males appeared to be most affected, particularly in the hospital setting. The majority of HA cases were whites, while more CA cases were African Americans. Almost all cases were resistant to Cefazolin (99%). Statistically significant differences in the resistance to Clindamycin (OR=14.9; 95%CI=7.4-29.9) and Erythromycin (OR=3.7; 95%CI=1.1-12.5) were observed. Antibiotics like Rifampin, Gentamicin and Vancomycin appeared to be most effective. Education to health providers and the community on the proper use of antibiotics and the importance of maintaining adequate hygiene measures is recommended.
Learning Objectives:
Keywords: Antibiotic Resistance, Emerging Diseases
Presenting author's disclosure statement:
I do not have any significant financial interest/arrangement or affiliation with any organization/institution whose products or services are being discussed in this session.