A decade of community MRSA in New Zealand

In 1992, isolates with a distinctive phage pattern were identified amongst the 186 MRSA recovered in New Zealand. These unusual isolates were recovered in the Auckland region from individuals who came from or had visited Western Samoa, and were called Western Samoan phage pattern (WSPP) MRSA. They were almost exclusively community based and were mainly responsible for the alarming 15-fold increase in MRSA seen in New Zealand over the next 6 years. Since 2000, the number of infections attributable to WSPP MRSA appears to be declining. WSPP isolates are clonal, possess a unique type IV SCC mec element, and a distinctive multilocus sequence allelic profile (ST30). WSPP isolates are invariably not multiresistant with methicillin MICs generally