Persistent Environmental Contamination with USA300 Methicillin- Resistant Staphylococcus aureus and Other Pathogenic Strain Types in Households with S. aureus Skin Infections

Objective. To understand the genotypic spectrum of environmental contamination of Staphylococcus aureus in households and its persistence.Design. Prospective longitudinal cohort investigation.Setting. Index participants identified at 2 academic medical centers.Participants. Adults and children with S. aureus skin infections and their household contacts in Los Angeles and Chicago.Methods. Household fomites were surveyed for contamination at baseline and 3 months. All isolates underwent genetic typing.Results. We enrolled 346 households, 88% of which completed the 3-month follow-up visit. S. aureus environmental contamination was 49% at baseline and 51% at 3 months. Among households with a USA300 methicillin-resistant S. aureus (MRSA) body infection isolate, environmental contamination with an indistinguishable MRSA strain was 58% at baseline and 63% at 3 months. Baseline factors associated with environmental contamination by the index subject’s infection isolate were body colonization by any household memb...