International Journal of STD & AIDS > Volume 20, Number 3 > Pp. 180-183

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Original research articles

Prevalence of community-associated methicillin-resistant Staphylococcus aureus colonization in men who have sex with men

T Antoniou PharmD  ^*  , R Devlin MD MHSc ^* , K Gough MD MEd ^* , M Mulvey PhD , K C Katz MD MSc ^**, M Zehtabchi BSc , J Polsky MSc , D Tilley MD , J Brunetta MD , G Arbess MD , C Guiang MD , B Chang MD , C Kovacs MD , A Ghavam-Rassoul MD MHSc , C Cavacuiti MD MHSc , B Corneslon MD , P Berger MD  and M R Loutfy MD MPH ^* 

^* Leslie Dan Faculty of Pharmacy, University of Toronto; St Michael's Hospital, Toronto; Maple Leaf Medical Clinic, Toronto, Ontario; National Microbiology Laboratory, Winnipeg, Manitoba; ^** North York General Hospital, Toronto, Ontario, Canada

Correspondence to: Dr Tony Antoniou, St Michael's Hospital, 410 Sherbourne Street, 4th floor, Toronto, Ontario, Canada M4X 1K2 Email: tantoniou{at}smh.toronto.on.ca

Outbreaks of skin and soft tissue infections mediated by community-associated methicillin-resistant Staphylococcus aureus (CA-MRSA) are being reported with increasing frequency among men who have sex with men (MSM). However, the potential role of asymptomatic colonization with this organism in perpetuating these infections is unclear. The purpose of this cross-sectional study was to determine the prevalence of colonization with CA-MRSA among a cohort of 500 MSM recruited from two inner city clinics in Toronto, Canada. Following the provision of informed consent, subjects completed a questionnaire capturing demographic and clinical variables, which may be associated with MRSA colonization. A nasal swab for MRSA was collected from each subject, and instructions were provided regarding the self-collection of a rectal swab. Cultured MRSA underwent pulsed-field gel electrophoresis and virulence testing for Panton-Valentine leukocidin gene expression. The prevalence of CA-MRSA colonization was 1.6% (95% CI: 0.5–2.6%).

Key Words: prevalence • methicillin resistance • Staphylococcus aureus • community-acquired infections • cross-sectional studies

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