Molecular study of methicillin-resistant Staphylococcus aureus isolates at a neonatal high-risk unit in Merida, Venezuela.

Background: Methicillin-resistant Staphylococcus aureus (MRSA) is a multiresistant microorganisms which holds first place in the world as a nosocomial pathogen. Special attention has therefore been directed to specific nosocomial surveillance systems and strict infection control measures for this microorganism in which the microbiological laboratory plays an important role by applying phenotypic and genotypic methods that permit establishing their epidemiological relationship especially in hospital outbreaks. In the present study the general objective was to study MRSA strains isolated from neonates with nosocomial infections and from healthcare personnel working in the Neonatal High Risk Unit (NHRU) of the Andes University Hospital Autonomous Institute (AUHAI) in Mérida, Venezuela.

Antimicrobial activity of Pseudognaphalium moritzianum.

The antimicrobial activity of ethanol, acetone and aqueous extracts of the aerial parts of Pseudognaphalium moritzianum was evaluated. Ethanol and acetone extracts showed activity against Staphlococcus aureus, Enterococcus faecalis and Pseudomonas aeruginosa. The aqueous extract was active against S.

[Epidemiology of Staphylococcus aureus nosocomial infections in a high-risk neonatal unit].

Nosocomial infections are a significant cause of morbidity and mortality throughout the world. In developing countries it is difficult to carry out effective surveillance and control programs for this type of infection because of the cost in both human and material resources. These considerations prompted us to perform a prospective study to determine the epidemiologic and microbiologic characteristics of nosocomial infections due to Staphylococcus aureus in the High-risk Neonatal Unit (HRNU) of the Instituto Autónomo Hospital Universitario de Los Andes (IAHULA), during the period of November 1997 to October 1998.

[Clinical, epidemiological and microbiological aspects of Mobiluncus sp. in bacterial vaginosis].

Background: In this paper, our goal was to determine the optimal isolation conditions, biochemical characterization, and preservation of species of the genus Mobiluncus, associated with bacterial vaginosis in patients attending the family planning clinic. Also, we tried to relate its presence with demographic variables and criteria used in the clinical diagnosis of bacterial diagnosis.

Methods: The specimen from the posterior fornix were collected and transported to the laboratory in a Stuart medium, one at room temperature and the other at 4 degrees C.

In vitro activity of fleroxacin against multiresistant gram-negative bacilli isolated from patients with nosocomial infections.

In order to evaluate the in vitro activity of fleroxacin against nosocomial gram-negative organisms, 263 multiresistant gram-negative bacilli (203 Enterobacteriaceae and 60 non-fermenting gram-negative bacilli) were isolated from adult patients with nosocomial infections. The different patterns of resistance to eight different antimicrobial agents (ampicillin, carbenicillin, piperacillin, cephalothin, cefamandole, ceftazidime, gentamicin and amikacin) were determined by minimum inhibitory concentration (MIC), using the agar dilution method. The most prevalent multiresistant species isolated were Klebsiella pneumoniae (28.