• Michael R Spence, Shari Courser, and Tereal Dammel.
• Kalispell Regional Medical Center, Kalispell, MT 59901, USA. mspence@krmc.org
• Am J Infect Control. 2009 Sep 1; 37 (7): 601-2.

BackgroundMethicillin-resistant Staphylococcus aureus (MRSA) infections are thought to now be endemic in some populations. The early identification of individuals admitted to the hospital who are harboring this organism is important for the timely implementation of appropriate control strategies. Our objective was to measure the prevalence of MRSA carriage in high-risk patients entering our hospital and to determine which of these patients screened for MRSA should be placed in contact precautions on admission.MethodsBetween January 1, 2007, and December 31, 2007, we used polymerase chain reaction analysis, with a turnaround time of 4 hours or less, to screen for MRSA in a select group of patients entering our hospital.ResultsWe screened 1,568 patients and found 144 (9.2%) positive. Of the 1,568 patients, 170 (10.8%) were known to previously have been MRSA positive. Of these, 90 (52.9%) had negative screens.ConclusionWe used a rapid screening test to identify patients harboring MRSA. Our findings support that MRSA is harbored sporadically and patients do not have to be placed in contact isolation based on a history of previously being MRSA positive.

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