Detection of Staphylococcus aureus nasal carriage in healthy young adults from a Hungarian University

Asymptomatic carriage of Staphylococcus aureus in healthy individuals has a high prevalence, especially in children and young adults. Nasal colonisation is a well-known risk factor for subsequent severe infection, or can be the source of transmission of this bacterium to other susceptible persons. In this study, we have surveyed the nasal carriage rate of students of the Semmelweis University, by screening 300 volunteers. We have determined the antibiotic sensitivity of the isolates by Etest, and their genetic relatedness by pulsed-fieled gel electrophoresis. The nasal carriage rate of S. aureus was found to be 29.3%, and that of MRSA only 0.67% (2/300). The isolates were generally sensitive to antibiotics, except for macrolides. We could observe a noticeably great genetic diversity, even among strains deriving from students of the same university group.