Prevalence and Risk Factors for Carriage of Methicillin-Resistant Staphylococcus aureus at Admission to the Intensive Care UnitResults of a Multicenter Study

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Abstract
MULTIPLE-DRUG–resistant bacteria, particularly methicillin-resistant Staphylococcus aureus (MRSA), have become prevalent in many countries.1-4 In French hospitals, the proportion of S aureus isolates that are resistant to methicillin is 30% to 40% overall1,4 and 78% in intensive care unit (ICU) patients with staphylococcal nosocomial infections.2 In this nearly endemic setting, hospital-to-hospital and ward-to-ward transfer of MRSA carriers contributes substantially to the spread of MRSA.4-8 In a recent large French multicenter study,4 43% of cases of MRSA infection or colonization were considered imported, and 53% of these imported cases were in patients transferred from another hospital.

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