Nasal carriage and antimicrobial susceptibility of Staphylococcus aureus among medical students at the HRH Princess Maha Chakri Sirindhorn Medical Center, Thailand: A follow-up study

Abstract

After clinical rotation in the hospital, the prevalence rate of asymptomatic nasal carriage of S. aureus increased and the S. aureus isolated has shown a relatively high resistance to erythromycin and clindamycin.

Hospital clones of methicillin-resistant Staphylococcus aureus are carried by medical students even before healthcare exposure

“…These studies reported MRSA carriage rates of 0–5.4% and SA carriage rates of 14–45% (excluding a small study from India reporting a higher carriage rate and a study from Canada of dental students [12, 15]). Only in a minority of these studies assessed the difference of SA carriage between pre-clinical and clinical medical students and most investigations assessed carriage at a single time-point only [7, 9, 21–23, 26, 27, 31]. Of these, three studies demonstrated higher SA carriage rates in the clinical studies stage [9, 23, 26].…”

“…Only in a minority of these studies assessed the difference of SA carriage between pre-clinical and clinical medical students and most investigations assessed carriage at a single time-point only [7, 9, 21–23, 26, 27, 31]. Of these, three studies demonstrated higher SA carriage rates in the clinical studies stage [9, 23, 26]. Furthermore, only a single study from Thailand had prospectively examined the change in SA carriage in the same group of medical students over multiple sampling times [26].…”

“…Of these, three studies demonstrated higher SA carriage rates in the clinical studies stage [9, 23, 26]. Furthermore, only a single study from Thailand had prospectively examined the change in SA carriage in the same group of medical students over multiple sampling times [26]. Therefore, we aimed to prospectively examine the change in SA carriage among medical students transitioning from pre-clinical to clinical education with a focus on MRSA.…”

Does Attending Clinical Wards Increase Nasal Carriage of Staphylococcus Aureus Among Medical Students?

“…During clinical training, the risk of conversion from a non-carrier state to carrier state was found to be increased for medical students. In a follow up study, it was concluded that attending clinical rotations in a hospital setting could increase the prevalence of asymptomatic nasal carriage of S. aureus among medical students [6].…”

“…It was suggested that after attending medical wards, medical students become both victims of S. aureus colonization and significant sources for the further spread of the pathogen [6]. Conversely, other authors pointed out that there was no association between attending medical wards and increased nasal carriage rates of S. aureus among medical students [7,8].…”