Molecular Phylogenetic Evidence for Noninvasive Zoonotic Transmission ofStaphylococcus intermediusfrom a Canine Pet to a Human

Abstract

rRNA-based molecular phylogenetic techniques were used to identify the bacterial species present in the ear fluid from a female patient with otitis externa. We report the identification ofStaphylococcus intermedius from the patient and a possible route of transmission. Analysis of 16S ribosomal DNA restriction fragment length polymorphisms indicated that the dominant species present was S. intermedius. A pet dog owned by the patient also was tested and found to harbor S. intermedius. In humans, the disease is rare and considered a zoonosis. Previously,S. intermedius has been associated with dog bite wounds, catheter-related injuries, and surgery. This study represents the first reported case of a noninvasive infection with S. intermedius.

Canine Staphylococcus pseudintermedius sinonasal infection in human hosts

“…Zoonotic infections attributed to S. pseudintermedius remain rare in the literature and, in most previously documented cases, there was no direct link to exposure to colonized animals . In the head and neck, the only reported manifestations of S. pseudintermedius infection have been in the ear and nasal cavity. One patient developed an acute sinus infection 2 weeks after transnasal, transsphenoidal surgery for a pituitary tumor; cultures grew S. pseudintermedius susceptible to vancomycin, linezolid, and rifampin.…”

Antibiotic resistance in staphylococci associated with cats and dogs

“…aureus and Staph. intermedius strains have the potential to cause zoonotic infections in humans (Tanner et al 2000;Manian 2003 (Lilenbaum et al 1998;Gortel et al 1999) and there are recent reports of detection of the mecA gene in Staph. schleiferi and Staphylococcus warneri isolated from the ear canals and skin pyodermas of dogs (Kania et al 2004;Yamashita et al 2005).…”

“…Although MRSA and methicillinresistant coagulase-negative staphylococci are not clinically important in cats and dogs, a few reports in the past have suggested the transfer of Staph. intermedius from dogs to humans (Harvey et al 1994;Tanner et al 2000) and there is somewhat anecdotal evidence that MRSA has been transferred indirectly from a dog to a patient in an intensive care unit (Cefai et al 1994) and a patient and his wife in a household setting (Manian 2003). Studies based on pulsefield gel electrophoresis and SCCmec typing of Staph.…”

“…Of these, PCRribotyping is the most frequently used method and it has had some limited application in assessing the zoonotic transmission of canine Staph. intermedius (Tanner et al 2000), identification of Staph. schleiferi (Yamashita et al 2005) and population diversity studies (Bes et al 2002b).…”

Microbiological Features of Staphylococcus schleiferi subsp. coagulans, Isolated from Dogs and Possible Misidentification with Other Canine Coagulase‐positive Staphylococci

“…coagulans (Igimi et al, 1990). Classification of the CPS has been undergoing rapid changes over the past decade as a result of the new methods for biochemical and molecular examination Tanner et al, 2000. Staphylococcus schleiferi subsp. coagulans was first identified and described by Igimi et al (1990).…”