Methicillin-resistant Staphylococcus aureus: an evolutionary, epidemiologic, and therapeutic odyssey

Clin Infect Dis. 2005 Feb 15;40(4):562-73. doi: 10.1086/427701. Epub 2005 Jan 24.

Abstract

Methicillin-resistant Staphylococcus aureus, first identified just over 4 decades ago, has undergone rapid evolutionary changes and epidemiologic expansion. It has spread beyond the confines of health care facilities, emerging anew in the community, where it is rapidly becoming a dominant pathogen. This has led to an important change in the choice of antibiotics in the management of community-acquired infections and has also led to the development of novel antimicrobials.

Publication types

  • Review

MeSH terms

  • Anti-Bacterial Agents / pharmacology
  • Anti-Bacterial Agents / therapeutic use
  • Bacterial Proteins / genetics
  • Community-Acquired Infections* / drug therapy
  • Community-Acquired Infections* / epidemiology
  • Community-Acquired Infections* / microbiology
  • Evolution, Molecular*
  • Humans
  • Methicillin Resistance* / genetics
  • Molecular Epidemiology
  • Staphylococcal Infections* / drug therapy
  • Staphylococcal Infections* / epidemiology
  • Staphylococcal Infections* / microbiology
  • Staphylococcus aureus* / classification
  • Staphylococcus aureus* / drug effects
  • Staphylococcus aureus* / genetics
  • Staphylococcus aureus* / pathogenicity

Substances

  • Anti-Bacterial Agents
  • Bacterial Proteins