S. aureus identified in industrial hog operation workers.

S. aureus, skin infection correlation identified in industrial hog operation workers.Inter-nasal antibiotic-resistant Staphylococcus aureus was associated with recent symptoms of skin and soft tissue infections in individuals who work on large industrial hog operations, according to recent study findings. Researchers from the Johns Hopkins Bloomberg School of Public Health, the University of North Carolina Gillings School of Global Public Health and community organizers at the Rural Empowerment Association for Community Help in Duplin County, North Carolina, collaborated to investigate the relationship between nasal carriage of livestock-associated S. aureus among industrial hog operation workers and their household members in North Carolina and self-reported skin and soft tissue infection (SSTI) symptoms. One hundred eighty-three participants —103 workers, 26 adult household members and 54 minor children — completed a baseline questionnaire and provided a baseline nasal swab between October 2013 and February 2014. The researchers compared the distributions of potential individual risk factors (ie, antibiotic usage, participation in contact sports) and household risk factors for S. aureus, and they found that traditional risk factors were uncommon among the hog workers and adult household members. However, 36% of the minors reported recently playing contact sports and 55% reported using a gym or workout facility during the 3 months prior to enrollment in the study. Forty-four percent of workers and 39% of the household members carried S. aureus at baseline and MRSA was identified in one worker. Twenty percent of workers and 10% of household members carried multidrug-resistant (MDR) S. aureus. Six hog operators and six household members — all children — reported recent SSTIs. Another study published this year by Heaney and colleagues suggests children who live with parents who work on large industrial hog operations have a higher prevalence of inter-nasal antibiotic-resistant S. aureus compared with children whose parents did not work on hog operations in the same community in North Carolina. see study here