Skip to main page content
U.S. flag

An official website of the United States government

Dot gov

The .gov means it’s official.
Federal government websites often end in .gov or .mil. Before sharing sensitive information, make sure you’re on a federal government site.

Https

The site is secure.
The https:// ensures that you are connecting to the official website and that any information you provide is encrypted and transmitted securely.

Access keys NCBI Homepage MyNCBI Homepage Main Content Main Navigation
. 2019 Mar 15;6(Suppl 1):S47-S53.
doi: 10.1093/ofid/ofy270. eCollection 2019 Mar.

Twenty-Year Trends in Antimicrobial Susceptibilities Among Staphylococcus aureus From the SENTRY Antimicrobial Surveillance Program

Daniel J Diekema  1 , Michael A Pfaller  1   2 , Dee Shortridge  2 , Marcus Zervos  3   4 , Ronald N Jones  2
Affiliations

Twenty-Year Trends in Antimicrobial Susceptibilities Among Staphylococcus aureus From the SENTRY Antimicrobial Surveillance Program

Daniel J Diekema et al. Open Forum Infect Dis. .

Erratum in

Abstract

Background: Staphylococcus aureus is among the most common human pathogens, with therapy complicated by the epidemic spread of methicillin-resistant Staphylococcus aureus (MRSA).

Methods: The SENTRY Antimicrobial Surveillance Program evaluated the in vitro activity of >20 antimicrobials against 191 460 clinical S. aureus isolates collected from 427 centers in 45 countries from 1997 to 2016. Each center contributed isolates and clinical data for consecutive episodes of bacteremia, pneumonia in hospitalized patients, urinary tract infection, and skin and skin structure infection.

Results: Overall, 191 460 S. aureus isolates were collected, of which 77 146 (40.3%) were MRSA, varying geographically from 26.8% MRSA in Europe to 47.0% in North America. The highest percentage of MRSA was in nosocomial isolates from patients aged >80 years. Overall, MRSA occurrences increased from 33.1% in 1997-2000 to a high of 44.2% in 2005-2008, then declined to 42.3% and 39.0% in 2009-2012 and 2013-2016, respectively. S. aureus bacteremia had a similar trend, with nosocomial and community-onset MRSA rates peaking in 2005-2008 and then declining. Vancomycin activity against S. aureus remained stable (minimum inhibitory concentration [MIC]90 of 1 mg/L and 100% susceptibility in 2016; no increase over time in isolates with a vancomycin MIC >1 mg/L). Several agents introduced during the surveillance period exhibited in vitro potency against MRSA.

Conclusions: In a large global surveillance program, the rise of MRSA as a proportion of all S. aureus peaked a decade ago and has declined since, consistent with some regional surveillance program reports. Vancomycin maintained high activity against S. aureus, and several newer agents exhibited excellent in vitro potencies.

Keywords: Staphylococcus aureus; antimicrobial resistance; epidemiology.

PubMed Disclaimer

Figures

Figure 1.
Figure 1.
Percent MRSA by region. Abbreviation: MRSA, methicillin-resistant Staphylococcus aureus.
Figure 2.
Figure 2.
Methicillin resistance by US census division: SENTRY Program, 1997–2016. Abbreviations: MRSA, methicillin-resistant Staphylococcus aureus; 1, New England; 2, Middle Atlantic; 3, East North Central; 4, West North Central; 5, South Atlantic; 6, East South Central; 7, West South Central; 8, Mountain; 9, Pacific; 10, Total.
Figure 3.
Figure 3.
SENTRY Program 20-year trends in percentage of Staphylococcus aureus BSI isolates that are MRSA. Abbreviations: BSI, bloodstream infection; MRSA, methicillin-resistant Staphylococcus aureus.
See this image and copyright information in PMC

References

    1. Chambers HF, Deleo FR. Waves of resistance: Staphylococcus aureus in the antibiotic era. Nat Rev Microbiol 2009; 7:629–41. - PMC - PubMed
    1. Klevens RM, Morrison MA, Nadle J, et al. ; Active Bacterial Core surveillance (ABCs) MRSA Investigators. Invasive methicillin-resistant Staphylococcus aureus infections in the United States. JAMA 2007; 298:1763–71. - PubMed
    1. Rubin RJ, Harrington CA, Poon A, et al. . The economic impact of Staphylococcus aureus infection in New York City hospitals. Emerg Infect Dis 1999; 5:9–17. - PMC - PubMed
    1. Sievert DM, Ricks P, Edwards JR, et al. ; National Healthcare Safety Network (NHSN) Team and Participating NHSN Facilities. Antimicrobial-resistant pathogens associated with healthcare-associated infections: summary of data reported to the National Healthcare Safety Network at the Centers for Disease Control and Prevention, 2009-2010. Infect Control Hosp Epidemiol 2013; 34:1–14. - PubMed
    1. Weiner LM, Webb AK, Limbago B, et al. . Antimicrobial-resistant pathogens associated with healthcare-associated infections: summary of data reported to the National Healthcare Safety Network at the Centers for Disease Control and Prevention, 2011-2014. Infect Control Hosp Epidemiol 2016; 37:1288–301. - PMC - PubMed