[The Role of Emergency Departments in Cross-Contamination: The Case of VRE].

Colonized surfaces, equipment, individuals, and infected patients can be sources for the hospital spread of vancomycin-resistant enterococci (VRE), which is one of the important nosocomial pathogens. The basic epidemiological tools for the prevention and control of hospital-acquired infections are the typing methods. Pulsed-field gel electrophoresis (PFGE) is a highly discriminating method used frequently to detect clonal associations in epidemics and hospital-acquired VRE infections.

[Investigation of the serotype distribution, biofilm production and antibiotic susceptibilities of group B streptococci isolated from urinary samples].

Streptococcus agalactiae (Group B streptococcus, GBS), a member of normal flora of human gastrointestinal and genitourinary systems, is a leading cause of sepsis, meningitis, and pneumonia particularly in newborn. GBS can also cause severe infections in pregnant women and adults with underlying disease, as well as mild diseases, such as urinary tract infections (UTIs). GBS strains exhibit 10 different serotypes, and the identification of serotype distribution is important epidemiologically.