Taking hospital pathogen surveillance to the next level

Abstract

High-throughput bacterial genomic sequencing and subsequent analyses can produce large volumes of high-quality data rapidly. Advances in sequencing technology, with commensurate developments in bioinformatics, have increased the speed and efficiency with which it is possible to apply genomics to outbreak analysis and broader public health surveillance. This approach has been focused on targeted pathogenic taxa, such as Mycobacteria, and diseases corresponding to different modes of transmission, including food-and-water-borne diseases (FWDs) and sexually transmitted infections (STIs). In addition, major healthcare-associated pathogens such as methicillin-resistant Staphylococcus aureus , vancomycin-resistant enterococci and carbapenemase-producing Klebsiella pneumoniae are the focus of research projects and initiatives to understand transmission dynamics and temporal trends on both local and global scales. Here, we discuss current and future public health priorities relating to genome-based surveillance of major healthcare-associated pathogens. We highlight the specific challenges for the surveillance of healthcare-associated infections (HAIs), and how recent technical advances might be deployed most effectively to mitigate the increasing public health burden they cause.

Multidrug-Resistant Staphylococcus sp. and Enterococcus sp. in Municipal and Hospital Wastewater: A Longitudinal Study

“…The presence of these species has also been reported in wastewater analyzed from hospital or community WWTPs in Germany, Portugal, Nigeria, and Iran [18,[25][26][27], these results being like those reported in this study. Interestingly, these species cause serious infections in humans, mainly S. aureus, S. epidermidis, S. hominis, and S. saprophyticus [10,11]. According to CAN and NUT hospital records (from August 2021 to September 2022), these four species ranked first as causing healthcare-associated infections (HAIs) in both hospitals (Microbiologic Laboratories' data).…”

“…Other species, such as Staphylococcus hominis, Staphylococcus warneri, Staphylococcus simulans, Staphylococcus saccharolyticus, Staphylococcus capitis, Staphylococcus cohnii, Staphylococcus lugdunensis, and Staphylococcus xylosus, have been isolated from various infections [10]. Coagulase-positive Staphylococcus aureus is another species associated with serious infections in humans and animals [11].…”

Whole Genome Sequencing: Applications in Clinical Bacteriology

“…This approach has been used on several taxa, such as mycobacteria, and infections corresponding to various modes of transmission, which include sexually transmitted diseases (STDs) and food- and water-borne diseases (FWDs). Furthermore, major healthcare-associated pathogenic bacteria such as Clostridium difficile , methicillin-resistant Staphylococcus aureus (MRSA), vancomycin-resistant enterococci, and carbapenemase-producing K. pneumoniae have been the target of several studies to track bacterial pathogens from local and global perspectives [ 96 ].…”