Isolation of Biofilm Producing Methicillin-Resistant Staphylococcus aureus from Hospitalized Orthopaedic Patients in Kano State, Nigeria

Biofilm formation and resistance to methicillin are among the factors that makes Staphylococcus aureus a very important human pathogen in both health-care and community settings. This study investigated methicillin-resistance among biofilm-producing S. aureus isolated from 49 orthopaedic in-patients within a 3 months period. Wound swabs, nasal swabs, bed swabs and urine samples were collected from each patient. The samples were cultured and screened for presence of S. aureus while the micro-titre plate method was used to detect biofilm producing isolates. PCR technique was finally used to detect the presence of mecA gene in methicilin resistant S. aureus (MRSA) isolates. Findings reveal 14.8% of bacterial isolates were Staphylococcus aureus of which 96.4% were biofilm-producers. However, strong biofilm producers constitute 11.1%. The mecA gene was detected in 15.8% of the MRSA isolates. Therefore, MRSA among biofilm-producing S. aureus is a potential threat primarily to the community of National Orthopaedic Hospital Dala and a major public health challenge. Keywords: Biofilm, Methicillin-resistance Staphylococcus aureus (MRSA), mecA gene, Orthopaedic patien