PREVALENCE AND SUSCEPTIBILITY PROFILES OF METHICILLIN-RESISTANT STAPHYLOCOCCUS AUREUS (MRSA) IN THE UNIVERSITY OF GHANA HOSPITAL, LEGON, ACCRA, GHANA

Abstract

Methicillin-resistant Staphylococcus aureus (MRSA) is one of the important causal agents of nosocomial infections worldwide. The prevalence and susceptibility profiles of MRSA in the University of Ghana Hospital, Legon, Accra were investigated from 65 swab samples. Samples were inoculated onto blood agar plates and incubated at 37°C aerobically for 24 h. After overnight incubation, isolates were tested biochemically and a total of 11 (16.9%) isolates of Staphylococcus aureus were identified from the swab samples. The S. aureus isolates were later confirmed as MRSA by growth on Oxacillin-Resistant Screening Agar Base (ORSAB) and detection of the mecA gene using polymerase chain reaction (PCR) technique. Kirby-Baeur disc diffusion method was also used to determine the susceptibility of the isolates. There was only 1 (9.1%) MRSA isolate detected from the samples. The MRSA isolate was susceptible to co-trimoxazole, tetracycline, and gentamicin but resistant to ampicillin, cephalexin, cefotaxime, ciprofloxacin, prulifloxacin, ofloxacin, cloxacillin, roxithromycin, lincomycin, and cefoxitin antibiotics used in this investigation. Despite the low prevalence rate in this study, there is still the need for strong continuous surveillance programs to monitor MRSA and its antibiotic profiles.