Emerging Infectious Diseases (May 2009)

Cross-Border Dissemination of Methicillin-Resistant Staphylococcus aureus, Euregio Meuse-Rhin Region

  • Ruud H. Deurenberg,
  • Eric Nulens,
  • Havard Valvatne,
  • Silvie Sebastian,
  • Christel Driessen,
  • Jos Craeghs,
  • Els De Brauwer,
  • Bernhard Heising,
  • Yvette J. Kraat,
  • Joachim Riebe,
  • Frans S. Stals,
  • Thera A. Trienekens,
  • Jacques Scheres,
  • Alexander W. Friedrich,
  • Frank H. Van Tiel,
  • Patrick S. Beisser,
  • Ellen E. Stobberingh

DOI
https://doi.org/10.3201/eid1505.071618
Journal volume & issue
Vol. 15, no. 5
pp. 727 – 734

Abstract

Read online

Because the prevalence of methicillin-resistant Staphylococcus aureus (MRSA) differs among the 3 countries forming the Euregio Meuse-Rhin (EMR) region (Belgium, Germany, and the Netherlands), cross-border healthcare requires information about the spread of MRSA in the EMR. We investigated the emergence, dissemination, and diversity of MRSA clones in the EMR by using several typing methods. MRSA associated with clonal complexes 5, 8, 30, and 45 was disseminated throughout the EMR. Dutch isolates, mainly associated with sequence types (ST) ST5-MRSA-II, ST5-MRSA-IV, ST8-MRSA-IV, and ST45-MSRA-IV had a more diverse genetic background than the isolates from Belgium and Germany, associated with ST45-MRSA-IV and ST5-MRSA-II, respectively. MRSA associated with pigs (ST398-MRSA-IV/V) was found in the Dutch area of the EMR. Five percent of the MRSA isolates harbored Panton-Valentine leukocidin and were classified as community-associated MRSA associated with ST1, 8, 30, 80, and 89.

Keywords