Enterobacter species in a pediatric hospital: horizontal transfer or selection in individual patients?
Enterobacter species were studied longitudinally in a children's hospital. In total, 287 Enterobacter isolates were obtained from 171 children in 15 different wards (from March 1995 through April 1997). Strains were typed by random amplified polymorphic DNA and pulsed-field gel electrophoresis, whic...
| Published in: | Journal of Infectious Diseases Vol. 184; no. 2; pp. 211 - 215 |
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| Main Authors: | , , , , , , , |
| Format: | research tables/charts Journal Article |
| Published: |
Oxford University Press / USA
7/15/2001
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| Online Access: | View this record in EBSCOhost |
| Summary: | Enterobacter species were studied longitudinally in a children's hospital. In total, 287 Enterobacter isolates were obtained from 171 children in 15 different wards (from March 1995 through April 1997). Strains were typed by random amplified polymorphic DNA and pulsed-field gel electrophoresis, which were concordant in outcome. In total, 97 DNA types and 199 colonization events were identified. A predominant clone was isolated 111 times from 62 children; another clone was isolated 19 times from 10 patients. These clones caused 36% of all colonizations. In 34% of the children, Enterobacter clones were found in 2-4 patients. The remaining colonizations were due to unique Enterobacter isolates. A large proportion of the Enterobacter strains was acquired through cross-transmission. This finding contrasts with the prevailing opinion that resistant Enterobacter strains are selected primarily from the patient's own gut flora. © 2001 Infectious Diseases Society of America |
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