Studies on the Bacterial Flora of Skin Lesions and the Druy Sensitivity of Pathogenic Staphylococci.

Abstract

Strains of pathogenic staphylococci isolated from outpatient at the S. D. F. central Hospital duriug 2 years between October 1, 1957 and June 30, 1959 tested for susceptibility to 7 antibiotics and subjected to phage typing. A tube-dilution technipue with determinations of bacteriostaiic ane bactericidal endpoints was employed. The following conclusions have been reached : 1) Out of the 537 strains isolated from skin lesions. 494 strains (92.5%) were gram-positive cocci and 219 strains (41%) were pathogenic staphylococci. 2) Marked differences were found between the coagulase-positive staphylococci and coagulasenegative staphylococci in the production of pigment, fibrinolysin and mannit fermention. And these characteristics are said to correlate well with coagulase production as an index of pathogenicity. 3) Among the 219 strains of pathogenic staphylococci, penicillin resistat strains occupied 86%, and these strains were resistant over 60% to terramycin and aureomycin. Although erythromycin and chloramphenicol were potent bactericidal agents. 4) The general incidence of antibiotics-resistant staphylococci appeared to be related to the frepuency and intensity of use of those antibiotics. 5) Of the strains isolated from skin infections 28.5% were typable, and the strains lysed by phages of Group I were most frequent among isolated strains. The phage pattern identified as 80 was the only frepuent one obserbed in this study, and showed increased. resistance to antibiotics. 6) In general, tube-dilution tests were in good agreement with the choice of an antibiotic for the therapy of a staphylococcal infection. The references and the correlation between agar plate and tube dilution sensitivity tests were described.