| Author: | Leung, Wing-fai |
| Title: | Detection of enterotoxigenic staphylococcus aureus in the anterior naresof young adults studying in the Hong Kong Polytechnic University |
| Degree: | M.Sc. |
| Year: | 2001 |
| Subject: | Hong Kong Polytechnic University -- Students College students -- Health and hygiene -- China -- Hong Kong Staphylococcus aureus Hong Kong Polytechnic University -- Dissertations |
| Department: | Multi-disciplinary Studies Department of Nursing and Health Sciences |
| Pages: | iii, 75 leaves : col. ill. ; 30 cm |
| Language: | English |
| Abstract: | The nasal carriage rate of enterotoxigenic Staphylococcus aureus among students studying in the Hong Kong Polytechnic University was determined. Of a total of 329 students sampled, 111 (33.7%) were carriers of S. aureus in their anterior nares, including 31(39.7%) of 78 biomedical science students, 28 (35.4%) of 79 nursing students and 52 (30.2%) of 172 hotel and catering management students. Thirty-five (31.5%) of these 111 S. aureus isolates were enterotoxigenic. Twenty-two (62.9%) produced staphylococcal enterotoxin A (SEA), 6(17.1%) produced SEB and 4(11.4%) produced SEC. Three isolates (8.6%) produced combinations of SEA, SEB and SED; SEA, SED and SEE; SEA and SEE respectively. No statistically significant association of carriage of enterotoxigenic S. aureus with sex and programmes of study were demonstrated. Regarding the susceptibility patterns of 111 S. aureus isolates, 93.7 % were resistant to penicillin. Increased resistance to erythromycin (22.5%) and tetracycline (14.4%) was observed. Two methicillin resistant S. aureus were isolated. With the exception of erythromycin, no significant association of antibiotic resistance with enterotoxin production was demonstrated. Sixty-nine biomedical science students had been sampled four times at regular intervals for a period of 18 months. Their nasal carriage patterns of S. aureus were classified into three categories including persistent carriers, intermittent carriers and non-carriers. Based on these classification, 14 (20.3%) were persistent carriers, 32 (46.4%) were intermittent carriers and 23(33.3%) were non-carriers. Six (38.9%) of the persistent carriers harbored enterotoxigenic S. aureus, whereas only 4 (17.6%) of the intermittent carriers carried enterotoxigenic S. aureus. The difference was statistically significant (P< 0.05, x2; odds ratio, 5.25 [95%CI, 1.184 to 23.278]). The finding that 33.7% of healthy adults in Hong Kong carried S. aureus in their anterior nares coupled with the fact that 31.5% of these isolates were enterotoxigenic should be of public health concern because they can readily contaminate foods and leading to an outbreak of food poisoning. |
| Rights: | All rights reserved |
| Access: | restricted access |
Files in This Item:
| File | Description | Size | Format | |
|---|---|---|---|---|
| b15732563.pdf | For All Users (off-campus access for PolyU Staff & Students only) | 3.46 MB | Adobe PDF | View/Open |
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