This study investigated the presence of methicillin-resistant Staphylococcus aureus (MRSA) in raw meat and fish and foods prepared from them for patient consumption in public hospitals in Salvador, Bahia, in northeastern Brazil. A total of 114 samples of raw meat and fish (chicken, n = 30; beef, n = 30; pork, n = 24; and fish, n = 30) and 63 samples of prepared foods (made with chicken, n = 15; beef, n = 15; pork, n = 15; and fish, n = 18) were collected from the kitchens of 10 different hospitals. Of the 114 investigated raw meat and fish samples, 28.1% were positive for MRSA, which comprised 23.3% beef, 23.3% chicken, 37.5% pork, and 30% fish samples. Of the prepared foods, 9.5% were positive for MRSA, which comprised 5.6% chicken products, 6.7% pork products, and 22.2% fish products. MRSA contamination was not detected in prepared beef dishes. A statistical analysis showed no association between the presence of MRSA and the type of raw food (P > 0.05). The high prevalence of MRSA among the raw foods tested and the presence of the microorganism in prepared foods emphasizes the necessity of enforcing hygienic practices within hospital kitchens.

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ABSTRACT:We modeled solid-liquid equilibria (SLEs) in polyethylene and polypropylene solutions with a Soave-Redlich-Kwong (SRK) cubic equation of state (EOS) and a perturbed-chain statistical associating fluid theory (PC-SAFT) EOS. Two types of mixing rules were used with SRK EOS: The Wong-Sandler mixing rule and the linear combination of the Vidal and Michelsen mixing rules (LCVM), both of which incorporated the Bogdanic and Vidal activity coefficient model. The performance of these models was evaluated with atmospheric-pressure and high-pressure experimental SLE data obtained from literature. The basic SLE equation was solved for the equilibrium melting temperature instead of for the composition. The binary interaction parameters of SRK and PC-SAFT EOS were estimated to best describe the experimental equilibrium behavior of 20 different polymer-solvent systems at atmospheric pressure and 31 other polymer-solvent systems at high pressure. A comparison with experimental data showed that SRK-LCVM agreed very well with the atmospheric SLE data and that PC-SAFT EOS was more efficient in highpressure conditions.

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