Staphylococcus aureus nasal colonization in HIV outpatients: persistent or transient?

Area of Science:

• Microbiology
• Infectious Diseases
• HIV/AIDS Research

Background:

• Staphylococcus aureus nasal carriage in HIV patients is not well understood.
• This study aimed to characterize the epidemiological and molecular aspects of S. aureus nasal colonization in HIV outpatients.

Purpose of the Study:

• To investigate the prevalence and characteristics of Staphylococcus aureus nasal carriage in HIV-positive individuals.
• To identify risk factors associated with S. aureus colonization in this population.

Main Methods:

• Screened HIV outpatients (no recent hospitalization) for S. aureus nasal colonization.
• Collected three samples per patient and assessed risk factors.
• Classified carriage as persistent, transient, or absent.
• Utilized pulsed-field gel electrophoresis (PFGE) for genotyping S. aureus strains to differentiate simple vs. multiple persistent colonization.

Main Results:

• Out of 111 patients, 70 (63.1%) were colonized with S. aureus.
• Patients with Acquired Immunodeficiency Syndrome (AIDS) showed a higher likelihood of colonization (P = .02).
• 25.2% were transient carriers, and 39.4% were persistent carriers.
• PFGE revealed simple persistent colonization in 24 patients and multiple in 17.

Conclusions:

• HIV patients demonstrate a high rate of S. aureus nasal colonization.
• Simple persistent colonization, defined by consistent genomic profiles, was the predominant form observed.