Methicillin Resistant Profile of Staphylococcus aureus Isolated from Apparently Healthy Students in Edo State University Uzairue

 Background and purpose: Staphylococcus aureus is a bacterium that causes disease in humans due to its pathogenic nature and is more responsible for infections than other Staphylococcus species. Methicillin-resistance Staphylococcus aureus (MRSA) is resistant to antibiotics and such as penicillins, cephalosporins and their derivatives has β-lactam rings. This study aimed to isolate and investigate MRSA in apparently healthy students in Edo State University Uzairue, Nigeria. Materials and methods: From both male and female subjects, 100 swab samples were obtained from the neck, ear, axilla, skin, and nose and were microbiologically analyzed. Gram staining was performed to identify and confirm the isolated S. aureus species using coagulase and catalase tests. Antimicrobial susceptibility test was perfomed by Kirby-Bauer disk diffusion test. Sensitivity to methicillin was determined by transparent halo formation around the bacterial colonies which was measured and expressed as the degree of sensitivity. Results: In this study, 46 samples were positive for S. aureus of which 36 strains (84.78%) were susceptible to methicillin and 10 (15.22%) were resistant to methicillin. Conclusion: This study showed few positive cases since the study population was relatively small and the majority of young students were not exposed to antibiotic abuse and hospital-acquired infections.