Abstract
Methicillin-resistant Staphylococcus aureus (MRSA) is a public health threat within the general community, thereby warranting identification of MRSA reservoirs within the community. Computer terminals in schools were sampled for S. aureus and methicillin-resistant staphylococci. The overall prevalence of MRSA on computer keyboards was low: 0.68% for a postsecondary institution and 2% and 0% for two secondary institutes. The MRSA isolate from the postsecondary institution did not correspond to the Canadian epidemic clusters, but is related to the USA 700 cluster, which contains strains implicated in outbreaks within the U.S. The isolate from the secondary institute's keyboard was typed as CMRSA7 (USA 400), a strain that has been implicated in both Canadian and U.S. epidemics. Methicillin-resistant S. haemolyticus and S. epidermidis were also isolated from keyboards, indicating that a mixed community of methicillinresistant staphylococci can be present on keyboards. Although the prevalence was low, the presence of MRSA combined with the high volume of traffic on these student computer terminals demonstrates the potential for publicaccess computer terminals and computer rooms at educational institutes to act as reservoirs.
| Original language | English |
|---|---|
| Pages (from-to) | 50-58 |
| Number of pages | 9 |
| Journal | Journal of Environmental Health |
| Volume | 75 |
| Issue number | 6 |
| Publication status | Published - 2013 |
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All Science Journal Classification (ASJC) codes
- Medicine(all)
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Prevalence of methicillin-resistant staphylococci species isolated from computer keyboards located in secondary and postsecondary schools. / Boa, Tyler T.; Rahube, Teddie O.; Fremaux, Bastien; Levett, Paul N.; Yost, Christopher K.
In: Journal of Environmental Health, Vol. 75, No. 6, 2013, p. 50-58.Research output: Contribution to journal › Review article
TY - JOUR
T1 - Prevalence of methicillin-resistant staphylococci species isolated from computer keyboards located in secondary and postsecondary schools
AU - Boa, Tyler T.
AU - Rahube, Teddie O.
AU - Fremaux, Bastien
AU - Levett, Paul N.
AU - Yost, Christopher K.
PY - 2013
Y1 - 2013
N2 - Methicillin-resistant Staphylococcus aureus (MRSA) is a public health threat within the general community, thereby warranting identification of MRSA reservoirs within the community. Computer terminals in schools were sampled for S. aureus and methicillin-resistant staphylococci. The overall prevalence of MRSA on computer keyboards was low: 0.68% for a postsecondary institution and 2% and 0% for two secondary institutes. The MRSA isolate from the postsecondary institution did not correspond to the Canadian epidemic clusters, but is related to the USA 700 cluster, which contains strains implicated in outbreaks within the U.S. The isolate from the secondary institute's keyboard was typed as CMRSA7 (USA 400), a strain that has been implicated in both Canadian and U.S. epidemics. Methicillin-resistant S. haemolyticus and S. epidermidis were also isolated from keyboards, indicating that a mixed community of methicillinresistant staphylococci can be present on keyboards. Although the prevalence was low, the presence of MRSA combined with the high volume of traffic on these student computer terminals demonstrates the potential for publicaccess computer terminals and computer rooms at educational institutes to act as reservoirs.
AB - Methicillin-resistant Staphylococcus aureus (MRSA) is a public health threat within the general community, thereby warranting identification of MRSA reservoirs within the community. Computer terminals in schools were sampled for S. aureus and methicillin-resistant staphylococci. The overall prevalence of MRSA on computer keyboards was low: 0.68% for a postsecondary institution and 2% and 0% for two secondary institutes. The MRSA isolate from the postsecondary institution did not correspond to the Canadian epidemic clusters, but is related to the USA 700 cluster, which contains strains implicated in outbreaks within the U.S. The isolate from the secondary institute's keyboard was typed as CMRSA7 (USA 400), a strain that has been implicated in both Canadian and U.S. epidemics. Methicillin-resistant S. haemolyticus and S. epidermidis were also isolated from keyboards, indicating that a mixed community of methicillinresistant staphylococci can be present on keyboards. Although the prevalence was low, the presence of MRSA combined with the high volume of traffic on these student computer terminals demonstrates the potential for publicaccess computer terminals and computer rooms at educational institutes to act as reservoirs.
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M3 - Review article
VL - 75
SP - 50
EP - 58
JO - Journal of Environmental Health
JF - Journal of Environmental Health
SN - 0022-0892
IS - 6
ER -