211483 Methicillin-resistant staphylococcus aureus (MRSA) in Midwestern U.S. swine and swine workers

Monday, November 9, 2009: 10:55 AM

Tara C. Smith, PhD , Department of Epidemiology, University of Iowa, Iowa City, IA
     
Methicillin-resistant Staphylococcus aureus (MRSA) has been a main cause of nosocomial infections for several decades. More recently, distinct strains of MRSA have emerged in the community, and this bacterium has also been isolated from domestic animals, livestock, and poultry, demonstrating the zoonotic potential of this emerging pathogen. We have recently documented the presence of MRSA colonization on swine farms in Iowa and Illinois. Colonized swine and swine farmers may serve as a reservoir of resistance that can be spread to the community in several ways, including human-to-human transmission; consumption and handling of infected meat; and environmental contamination of air, water, and/or soil. This presentation will discuss current research investigating MRSA in conventional confinement and organic/antibiotic-free swine farms, as well as air-borne MRSA in and around hog confinement barns.

Learning Objectives:
1) Identify elements of livestock operations that make these operations vulnerable to MRSA colonization. 2) Describe the relationship of MRSA to various types of animal agriculture.

Keywords: Antibiotic Resistance, Agricultural Work Safety

Presenting author's disclosure statement:

Qualified on the content I am responsible for because: I have carried out research on the topic of MRSA and swine, and have published the first evidence of this in the United States. This has been published in peer-reviewed scientific journals.
Any relevant financial relationships? No

I agree to comply with the American Public Health Association Conflict of Interest and Commercial Support Guidelines, and to disclose to the participants any off-label or experimental uses of a commercial product or service discussed in my presentation.

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