Straphyloccus aureus

S. aureus is a versatile and exceedingly common pathogen, not just within hospitals but also in the community. The organism causes a wide variety of infections ranging from minor skin sepsis to severe, potentially fatal conditions such as bacteraemia and endocarditis. It is one of the most important causes of life-threatening bacterial infections in the developed world. In most countries, an increasing proportion of S. aureus infections are due to methicillin resistant isolates, limiting treatment options and increasing health care costs. The emergence and spread of community-onset MRSA infections begins a new chapter in the evolution of this versatile pathogen. These community-acquired MRSAs are typically non-multiresistant but are often of high virulence with the capacity to cause systemic disease in adults and children with no known risk factors. Infecting strains often originate from the patient's nasal vestibule (nares) and approximately 25% of the population carries S. aureus at this site. Higher carriage rates are found in individuals with eczema. For example, approximately 25% of children have eczema, at least 50% of whom carry S. aureus in the nares and/or on their lesional skin. Syntopix is developing topical products that prevent nasal carriage of S. aureus and can be used topically to treat superficial staphylococcal infections as well as infected eczema.

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