Hostname: page-component-77c89778f8-vpsfw Total loading time: 0 Render date: 2024-07-19T06:43:58.888Z Has data issue: false hasContentIssue false

Increased Antimicrobial Resistance of Pathogenic Coagulase-Negative Staphylococci From Blood Cultures (1961–1981)

Published online by Cambridge University Press:  02 January 2015

D.J. Flournoy*
Affiliation:
Laboratory Service, Veterans Administration Medical Center, Oklahoma City, Oklahoma

Extract

Coagulase-negative staphylococci (CONS) have only recently gained notoriety as pathogens. Several reports have established their pathogenicity in bacterial endocarditis, prosthetic heart valve endocarditis, intraventricular shunts for treatment of hydrocephalus and intravenous catheters. One difficult decision for physicians is determining whether a particular CONS isolate is pathogenic or contaminant. The differentiation of pathogenic and contaminant CONS has recently been noted, but further studies are needed to aid in this differentiation. Data on antimicrobial susceptibilities of positive blood culture isolates were recently compiled at this institution. This report compares antimicrobial susceptibilities of pathogenic and contaminant CONS and Staphylococcus aureus blood culture isolates from 1961-1981 at this institution.

Type
Original Articles
Copyright
Copyright © The Society for Healthcare Epidemiology of America 1984

Access options

Get access to the full version of this content by using one of the access options below. (Log in options will check for institutional or personal access. Content may require purchase if you do not have access.)

References

1.Keys, TF, Hewitt, WL: Endocarditis due to micrococci and Staphylococcus epidermidis. Arch Intern Med 1973;132:216220.CrossRefGoogle ScholarPubMed
2.Speller, DCE, Mitchell, RG: Coagulase-negative staphylococci causing endocarditis after cardiac surgery. J Clin Pathol 1973;26:517522.CrossRefGoogle ScholarPubMed
3.Quinn, EL, Cox, F, Fisher, M: The problem of associating coagulase negative staphylococci with disease. Ann NY Acad 1965;128:428442.CrossRefGoogle ScholarPubMed
4.Collins, RN, Braun, PA, Zinner, SH, et al: Risk of social and systemic infections with polyethylene intravenous catheters. N Engl J Med 1978;279:340343.CrossRefGoogle Scholar
5.Flournoy, DJ, Price, SB: Coagulase-negative staphylococci: Contaminant or pathogen? Laboratory Medicine 1982;13:235237.CrossRefGoogle Scholar
6.Bauer, AW, Kirby, WMM, Sherris, JC, et al: Antibiotic susceptibility testing by a standardized single disk method. Am J Clin Pathol 1966;36:493496.CrossRefGoogle ScholarPubMed
7.Horvitz, RA, von Graevenitz, A: Interpretation of blood cultures yielding Staphylococcus aureus. Infection 1977;5:207210.CrossRefGoogle ScholarPubMed
8.Archer, GL: Antimicrobial susceptibility and selection of resistance among Staphylococcus epidermidis isolates recovered from patients with infections of indwelling foreign devices. Antimicrob Agents Chemother 1978;14:353359.CrossRefGoogle ScholarPubMed