The prevalence of methicillin- and clindamycin-resistant head and neck infections in children is increasing.
Reports of methicillin-resistant Staphylococcus aureus (MRSA) as a cause of skin and soft-tissue infections in children have been increasing. Investigators reviewed a national database of microbiological test results from more than 300 U.S. hospitals to examine trends in antibiotic drug sensitivity of S. aureus in head and neck infections in children from 2001 to 2006.
Of 20,893 patient isolates with susceptibility testing results, 4534 (21.6%) were methicillin resistant, 16,333 (77.8%) were methicillin sensitive, and 26 (<1%) had intermediate susceptibility. A total of 47% of MRSA samples were resistant to clindamycin. The percentage of all isolates that were methicillin resistant increased from 11.8% in 2001 to 28.1% in 2006.