Characterization of Staphylococcus aureus Strains from Skin and Soft Tissue Infection Cases in Haripur and Abbottabad Cities of Pakistan

The current article reports the determination of the level of antibiotic resistance and detection of pvl and mecA gene in Staphylococcus aureus strains isolated from skin and soft tissue infection cases at District Headquarters Hospital (DHQ) Haripur, Ayub Medical Complex, Abbottabad, Pakistan and Yahya Hospital, Haripur. A total of 405 samples were collected during the period from June 2018 and March 2019. Isolates were identified by using different microbiological, biochemical tests as well as cultural characteristics and polymerase chain reaction. The antibiotic sensitivity testing was carried out by using conventional disc diffusion assay, whereas the presence of Panton-Valentine Leukocidin (PVL) and mecA genes in the isolated strains was determined using PCR. The results established that the 105 samples showed the presence of Staphylococcus aureus (S. aureus) (25.9%), of them 84 (80%) of the isolated strains have been identified as methicillin resistant S. aureus (MRSA). A high level of resistance was obtained against cefazolin (91.43%), augmentin (83.80%), ceftriaxone (59.4%), and lincomycin (57.10%). No isolate was found to be resistant to vancomycin. The antibiotic-resistant gene mecA was found to be positive in all 100% (n=80) samples with MRSA strains while PVL gene was positive among 36% (n=38%) of MRSA strains. The level of antibiotic resistance is higher than all previous studies from the region.