Methicillin-resistant<i>Staphylococcus aureus</i>in Europe, 1999–2002

TLDR

The European Antimicrobial Resistance Surveillance System routinely collects antimicrobial susceptibility tests for Staphylococcus aureus. The study examined inter‑ and intra‑country variation and temporal trends in MRSA proportions across the European Antimicrobial Resistance Surveillance System. Data from 50,759 isolates collected between 1999 and 2002 at 495 hospitals in 26 European countries were analyzed. MRSA prevalence ranged from <1 % in northern Europe to >40 % in southern and western Europe, with significant increases in several countries and decreases in Slovenia; intra‑country hospital variation was pronounced, especially in countries with 5–20 % prevalence, underscoring the need for targeted national, regional, and hospital‑level control measures.

Abstract

Abstract We explored the variation in proportions of methicillin-resistant Staphylococcus aureus (MRSA) between and within countries participating in the European Antimicrobial Resistance Surveillance System and temporal trends in its occurrence. This system collects routine antimicrobial susceptibility tests for S. aureus. We examined data collected from January 1999 through December 2002 (50,759 isolates from 495 hospitals in 26 countries). MRSA prevalence varied almost 100-fold, from <1% in northern Europe to >40% in southern and western Europe. MRSA proportions significantly increased in Belgium, Germany, Ireland, the Netherlands, and the United Kingdom, and decreased in Slovenia. Within countries, MRSA proportions varied between hospitals with highest variance in countries with a prevalence of 5% to 20%. The observed trends should stimulate initiatives to control MRSA at national, regional, and hospital levels. The large differences between hospitals indicate that efforts may be most effective at regional and hospital levels.