Transmission Dynamics of Methicillin-Resistant Staphylococcus aureus in a Medical Intensive Care Unit in India

Solomon Christopher, Rejina Mariam Verghis, Belavendra Antonisamy, Thuppal Varadachari Sowmyanarayanan, Kootallur Narayanan Brahmadathan, Gagandeep Kang and Ben Symons Cooper

PLOS ONE, 2011, vol. 6, issue 7, 1-5

Abstract: Background: Methicillin-resistant Staphylococcus aureus (MRSA) is a global pathogen and an important but seldom investigated cause of morbidity and mortality in lower and middle-income countries where it can place a major burden on limited resources. Quantifying nosocomial transmission in resource-poor settings is difficult because molecular typing methods are prohibitively expensive. Mechanistic statistical models can overcome this problem with minimal cost. We analyse the transmission dynamics of MRSA in a hospital in south India using one such approach and provide conservative estimates of the organism's economic burden. Methods and Findings: Fifty months of MRSA infection data were collected retrospectively from a Medical Intensive Care Unit (MICU) in a tertiary hospital in Vellore, south India. Data were analysed using a previously described structured hidden Markov model. Conclusions: Our analysis of routine data provides the first estimate of the nosocomial transmission potential of MRSA in India. The high levels of transmission estimated underline the need for cost-effective interventions to reduce MRSA transmission in hospital settings in low and middle income countries.

Date: 2011
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Persistent link: https://EconPapers.repec.org/RePEc:plo:pone00:0020604

DOI: 10.1371/journal.pone.0020604

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