Methicillin-resistant Staphylococcus aureus staff screening and decolonisation.

摘要

Dr Cross, in his editorial on mass screening of hospital staff for methicillin-resis-tant Staphylococcus aureus (MRSA) [1], mentions only briefly, failure of decolonisation as a disadvantage. He did not, I* feel, sufficiently expand on the serious implications of what decolonisation failure actually means for staff. 'Simple' MRSA eradication with topical treatment fails in anything from 7% to 18% of cases even after repeated regimes [2, 3]. Measures employed thereafter, to clear MRSA from those persistently colonised, subsequently become more aggressive and harmful. Many have required prolonged treatment with systemic antimicrobials such as vancomycin and on occasions, healthcare workers have had to endure repeated decontamination of their homes whilst having multiple drug therapy at the same time.