Jpn. J. Infect. Dis., 57, 37-40, 2004

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Original Article

An Epidemiological Analysis of Stenotrophomonas maltophilia Strains in a University Hospital

Rahmet Caylan*, Nese Kaklikkaya¹, Kemalettin Aydin, Faruk Aydin¹, Gurdal Yilmaz, Birol Ozgumus¹ and Iftihar Koksal

Department of Infectious Diseases and Clinical Microbiology and ¹Department of Microbiology and Clinical Microbiology, Karadeniz Technical University School of Medicine, Trabzon 61080, Turkey

(January 14, 2004. March 3, 2004)

*Corresponding author: Mailing address: Department of Infectious Diseases and Clinical Microbiology, Keradeniz Technical University School of Medicine, 61080 Trabzon, Turkey. Tel: +90-462-377-5613, Fax: +90-462-325-0518, E-mail: rahmetcaylan@yahoo.com

SUMMARY: The aim of this investigation was to evaluate the epidemiology of Stenotrophomonas maltophilia in a university hospital of Turkey. From June 2000 to December 2001, S. maltophilia strains were collected, clinical presentations were noted, and MIC determinations were performed by means of E-test. Enterobacterial repetitive intergenic consensus sequences-PCR (ERIC-PCR) was used for molecular typing of the strains. Forty-four strains of S. maltophilia were isolated from 41 hospitalized patients in a teaching hospital. The majority of specimens were from the blood and respiratory tract. Antimicrobial sensitivities of these strains were as follows: 97.7 % trimethoprim-sulfamethoxazole, 15.9% ticarcillin, and 95.4% ticarcillin-clavulanate. The strains were evaluated using the ERIC-PCR method. It was of interest to note that epidemiological typing revealed three small outbreaks that were caused by a total of 12 strains. The remaining isolates generated singular DNA patterns. DNA amplification was possible in 38 isolates and yielded 26 different patterns in a period of 20 months, leading to the suggestion that commensal bacteria becomes selected in the presence of a suitable host.

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