Background Multiple drug resistance (MDR) in staphylococci, including resistance to the semi‐synthetic penicillinase‐resistant penicillins such as meticillin, is a problem of global proportions that presents serious challenges to the successful treatment of staphylococcal infections of companion animals. Objectives The objective of this document is to provide harmonized recommendations for the diagnosis, prevention and treatment of meticillin‐resistant staphylococcal infections in dogs and cats. Methods The authors served as a Guideline Panel (GP) and reviewed the literature available prior to September 2016. The GP prepared a detailed literature review and made recommendations on selected topics. The World Association of Veterinary Dermatology (WAVD) provided guidance and oversight for this process. A draft of the document was presented at the 8th World Congress of Veterinary Dermatology (May 2016) and was then made available via the World Wide Web to the member organizations of the WAVD for a period of three months. Comments were solicited and posted to the GP electronically. Responses were incorporated by the GP into the final document. Conclusions Adherence to guidelines for the diagnosis, laboratory reporting, judicious therapy (including restriction of use policies for certain antimicrobial drugs), personal hygiene, and environmental cleaning and disinfection may help to mitigate the progressive development and dissemination of MDR staphylococci.

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BackgroundStaphylococcus aureus and other coagulase-positive staphylococci (CPS) colonize skin and mucous membrane sites and can cause skin and soft tissue infections (SSTIs) in humans and animals. Factors modulating methicillin-resistant S. aureus (MRSA) colonization and infection in humans remain unclear, including the role of the greater microbial community and environmental factors such as contact with companion animals. In the context of a parent study evaluating the households of outpatients with community MRSA SSTI, the objectives of this study were 1) to characterize the microbiota that colonizes typical coagulase-positive Staphylococcus spp. carriage sites in humans and their companion pets, 2) to analyze associations between Staphylococcus infection and carriage and the composition and diversity of microbial communities, and 3) to analyze factors that influence sharing of microbiota between pets and humans.ResultsWe enrolled 25 households containing 56 pets and 30 humans. Sampling locations were matched to anatomical sites cultured by the parent study for MRSA and other CPS. Bacterial microbiota were characterized by sequencing of 16S ribosomal RNA genes. Household membership was strongly associated with microbial communities, in both humans and pets. Pets were colonized with a greater relative abundance of Proteobacteria, whereas people were colonized with greater relative abundances of Firmicutes and Actinobacteria. We did not detect differences in microbiota associated with MRSA SSTI, or carriage of MRSA, S. aureus or CPS. Humans in households without pets were more similar to each other than humans in pet-owning households, suggesting that companion animals may play a role in microbial transfer. We examined changes in microbiota over a 3-month time period and found that pet staphylococcal carriage sites were more stable than human carriage sites.ConclusionsWe characterized and identified patterns of microbiota sharing and stability between humans and companion animals. While we did not detect associations with MRSA SSTI, or carriage of MRSA, S. aureus or CPS in this small sample size, larger studies are warranted to fully explore how microbial communities may be associated with and contribute to MRSA and/or CPS colonization, infection, and recurrence.Electronic supplementary materialThe online version of this article (doi:10.1186/s40168-014-0052-7) contains supplementary material, which is available to authorized users.

One Health is defined as the intersection and integration of knowledge regarding humans, animals, and the environment, yet as the One Health scientific literature expands, there is considerable heterogeneity of approach and quality of reporting in One Health studies. In addition, many researchers who publish such studies do not include or integrate data from all three domains of human, animal, and environmental health. This points to a critical need to unify guidelines for One Health studies. This report details the Checklist for One Health Epidemiological Reporting of Evidence (COHERE) to guide the design and publication format of future One Health studies. COHERE was developed by a core writing team and international expert review group that represents multiple disciplines, including human medicine, veterinary medicine, public health, allied professionals, clinical laboratory science, epidemiology, the social sciences, ecohealth and environmental health. The twin aims of the COHERE standards are to 1) improve the quality of reporting of observational or interventional epidemiological studies that collect and integrate data from humans, animals and/or vectors, and their environments; and 2) promote the concept that One Health studies should integrate knowledge from these three domains. The 19 standards in the COHERE checklist address descriptions of human populations, animal populations, environmental assessment, spatial and temporal relationships of data from the three domains, integration of analyses and interpretation, and inclusion of expertise in the research team from disciplines related to human health, animal health, and environmental health.

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