Transmission of methicillin-resistant Staphylococcus aureus (MRSA) from animals to humans is currently of great concern due to the implications for human health and the health care system. Quite recently there has been an increased attention to the fact that this transmission goes both ways and in many instances the transmission of LA-MRSA from humans to animals has great impact on the introduction of LA-MRSA both to herds and countries. Several exemples of this will be presented and discussed.
Transission to humans has been studied experimentally to elucidate the factors determining nasal contamination during farm visits. There are marked differences between short term visitors to a swine farm and farm workers both in terms of level of carriage and changes in the nasal microbiome. The talk will present an overview of current research and discuss possible ways to limit transmission of LA-MRSA between humans and animals.