The First Report of t8463 and t605 spa Types in Methicillin-resistant Staphylococcus aureus isolated from ICUs in...

Staphylococcus aureus is the most important human pathogen, in community and hospital-acquired infections. The colonization rate of this organism is high in medical personnel and devices. Considering the importance of carriers in the transmission of S. aureus infection, this study investigated the origin of methicillin-resistant S. aureus (MRSA) isolated from Velayat and Poursina Hospitals of Rasht. In an eight-month period, a total of 500 samples were collected from hospitalized patients, healthcare personnel, various surfaces, air, and medical devices within the intensive care units (ICUs) of Velayat and Poursina Hospitals. After the identification of MRSA strains by microbiological and biochemical standard methods, the DNA of the isolates was extracted. The spa typing of MRSA strains was done after determining the sequence of amplified protein A genes by polymerase chain reaction (PCR) using specific primers. Among 500 samples, 45 (9%) samples were infected with S. aureus and 31 (68.9%) MRSA strains were identified from different ICUs. For the first time, S. aureus was divided into three types with the help of the spa technique in the ICU of Rasht hospitals. Among the examined samples, the t14870 spa type prevailed (95.5%), which had been found in previous studies in different regions of Iran. However, two types, t8463 (2.2%) and t605 (2.2%), were obtained for the first time in Iran, which were MRSA and obtained from the noses of patients. The high frequency of S. aureus isolates in (ICUs) and among healthcare personnel significantly contributes to the transmission of infections within the hospital setting.