• Proceedings of The Korean Society of Health Promotion Conference
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• 2005.11a
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• pp.199-233
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• 2005

• Journal of Korean Academy of Fundamentals of Nursing
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• v.19 no.1
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• pp.122-133
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• 2012

Purpose: The purpose of this study was to develop a web-based education program on control vancomycin-resistant enterococci (VRE) infections and to identify the effects of the program on knowledge and performance of nursing students. Methods: The web-based VRE infection control education program was developed by using the network-based instructional systems design model. The nursing students in the experimental group could access this web-based education program at any time, and as many times as they wanted, during the clinical training period. Effects were evaluated by assessing knowledge and performance of VRE infection control measures during the clinical training period. Results: The contents of the education program included diagnosis, transmission, and treatment of VRE, contact precautions, hand washing, personal protective equipment, environment management, and quizzes. The lecture portion was filmed in a virtual screen studio using flash animation, video, and sound effects, and it was uploaded on an internet site. The knowledge and performance scores of the experimental group after using the education program were significantly higher than those of the control group. Conclusion: The results suggest that the web-based VRE infection control education program is an effective educational method to enhance knowledge and performance of VRE infection control measures.

• Journal of Microbiology and Biotechnology
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• v.19 no.7
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• pp.734-741
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• 2009

Recently, strains of methicillin-resistant Staphylococcus aureus (MRSA) with reduced susceptibility to vancomycin (VCM) have been clinically isolated. The antibacterial activity of a new drug, linezolid (LZD), in such a strain was evaluated by measuring bacterial metabolic activity. A total of 73 MRSA strains having various susceptibilities to VCM were subjected to a novel and highly sensitive chemiluminescence-based assay. LZD MIC in the tested strains, measured by the microbroth dilution method, was within the range 1-4 mg/l (mostly ${\leq}2$mg/l), except for one LZD-resistant strain (NRS127; MIC=7 mg/l), and showed no correlation with VCM resistance. The chemiluminescence assay demonstrated that bacterial metabolic activity was strongly suppressed with increasing LZD concentration. The chemiluminescence intensity curve had a low baseline activity without tailing in most strains. The present results suggest that LZD has strong antibacterial activity against MRSA strains, and would be effective for treatment of infections that are poorly responsive to VCM. The chemiluminescence assay facilitated sensitive and discriminative susceptibility testing within a relatively short time.

• Journal of Korean Academy of Nursing
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• v.43 no.2
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• pp.287-295
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• 2013

Purpose: The purpose of this study was to identify vancomycin-resistant enterococcus (VRE) colonization rate in patients admitted to the intensive care unit (ICU), associated risk factors and clinical outcomes for VRE colonization. Methods: Of the 7,703 patients admitted to the ICUs between January, 2008 and December, 2010, medical records of 554 VRE colonized and 503 uncolonized patients were reviewed retrospectively. To analyzed the impact of colonization on patients' clinical outcomes, 199 VRE colonized patients were matched with 199 uncolonized patients using a propensity score matching method. Results: During the study period, 567 (7.2%) of the 7,703 patients were colonized with VRE. Multivariate analysis identified the following independent risk factors for VRE colonization: use of antibiotics (odds ratio [OR]=3.33), having bedsores (OR=2.92), having invasive devices (OR=2.29), methicillin-resistant Staphylococcus aureus co-colonization (OR=1.84), and previous hospitalization (OR=1.74). VRE colonized patients were more likely to have infectious diseases than uncolonized patients. VRE colonization was associated with prolonged hospitalization and higher mortality. Conclusion: Strict infection control program including preemptive isolation for high-risk group may be helpful. Further research needs to be done to investigate the effects of active surveillance program on the incidence of colonization or infection with VRE in the ICU.

• Journal of Microbiology and Biotechnology
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• v.21 no.12
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• pp.1345-1351
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• 2011

Vancomycin therapy failure due to the emergence of tolerance in pneumococci is increasing. The molecular mechanism of tolerance is not clear, but lytA and $pep^{27}$ are known to be involved. Our aim was to evaluate the expression of both genes in vancomycin-tolerant Streptococcus pneumoniae (VTSP) strains. Eleven VTSP strains from a total of 309 clinical isolates of S. pneumoniae from 1997 to 2006 were classified according to the criteria of Liu and Tomasz. All VTSP strains were evaluated for susceptibility according to CLSI criteria, serotype by the Quellung test, and clonality by PFGE. The expressions of lytA and $pep^{27}$ were analyzed in different growth phases by RT-PCR with and without vancomycin. Eighty-two percent of VTSP strains showed resistance to penicillin, and 100% were sensitive to vancomycin and cefotaxime. The most frequent serotypes of VTSP strains were 23F (4/11) and 6B (3/11). Clonal relationship was observed in only two strains. No significant changes were observed in $pep^{27}$ expression in the three phases of growth in VTSP strains with and without vancomycin. Interestingly, $pep^{27}$ expression in the stationary phase in the non-tolerant reference strain R6 was significantly higher. However, no significant differences in lytA expression were observed between VTSP and R6 strains during the phases of growth analyzed. The absence of changes in $pep^{27}$ expression in VTSP strains in the stationary phase may be related to their ability to tolerate high antibiotic concentrations, and thus, they survive and remain in the host under the antibiotic selective pressure reflected in therapeutic failure.

• Korean Journal of Microbiology
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• v.55 no.3
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• pp.293-295
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• 2019

Enterococcus faecalis strain DM01 was isolated from meju, a traditional Korean fermented soybean product. The strain did not exhibit resistance to eight antibiotics (ampicillin, chloramphenicol, ciprofloxacin, erythromycin, gentamicin, penicillin G, tetracycline, and vancomycin), biofilm formation, and hemolytic activity. The genome of strain DM01 consists a single circular 2,785,968-bp chromosome with a G + C content of 37.68%. The complete genomic sequence of strain DM01 provides genetic information to support the absence of antibiotic resistance, biofilm formation, and hemolytic activity.

• Journal of Korean Biological Nursing Science
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• v.8 no.1
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• pp.5-14
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• 2006

Staphyloccus aureus is one of the most important pathogens in clinical settings. It is also one of the leading causes of nosocomial infections and the dissemination of multiple drug-resistant strains, mainly methicillin resistant Staphyloccus aureus, and the recent emergence of a vancomycin resistant MRSA is the concern to hospital worldwide. MRSA strains have acquired multiple resistance to a wide range of antibiotics, including aminoglycosides and macrolides. $\beta$-Lactam resistance of methicillin-resistnat Staphyococcus aureus is determined by the function of penicillin binding protein 2'(PBP2') encoded by the methicillin resistance gene mec A. MRSA strains carry methicillin resistance gene mecA, encoded by a mobile genetic element designated staphylococoal cassette chromosome mec(SCCmec). MRSA clones are defined by the type of SCCmec element and the genotype of the methicilline-susceptible Staphyococcus aureus chromosome in which the SCCmec element is integrated.

• Korean Journal of Microbiology
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• v.46 no.4
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• pp.341-345
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• 2010

The prevalence and antimicrobial susceptibilities of Staphylococcal isolates from bovine milk samples were assessed. From January 2009 to October 2009, a total 287 bovine milk samples were randomly collected from 15 stock raising farms located in northern area of Kyunggi province and cultured for the presence of Staphylococci spp. A total 79 staphylococcal isolates were recovered from the milk samples. The predominant isolates were S. aureus (43.03%) and S. chromogenes (24.05%). Antimicrobial resistance patterns of 79 Staphylococcal isolates against ampicillin, chloramphenicol, ciprofloxacin, erythromycin, gentamicin, oxacillin, teicoplanin, tetracyclin, and vancomycin were tested. Staphylococcal isolates revealed the highest resistance to ampicillin (56.96%) and oxacillin (39.23%). Of 31 oxacillin resistance strains, 8 strains carry mecA gene which is responsible for methicillin resistance.

• Korean Journal of Fisheries and Aquatic Sciences
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• v.52 no.6
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• pp.587-595
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• 2019

Eighty-three Vibrio parahaemolyticus isolates from surface seawater in Gomso Bay on the west coast of Korea, and commercial fisheries from Gunsan fisheries center were analyzed for the presence of virulence genes and susceptibility to 30 different antimicrobials. All 83 isolates were examined for the presence of two virulence genes (tdh or trh) using polymerase chain reaction; however, neither gene was found in any of the isolates. A disk diffusion susceptibility test, showed that all of the strains studied were resistant to clindamycin, oxacillin, ticarcillin, and vancomycin, and also revealed varying levels of resistance to ampicillin (98.8%), penicillin G (95.2%), streptomycin (20.5%), cefoxitin (14.5%), amikacin (6.0%), cephalothin (4.8%), and erythromycin (3.6%). However, all of the strains were susceptible to 19 other antimicrobial agents, including cefepime, cefotaxime, chloramphenicol, gentamycin, nalidixic acid, sulfamethoxazole/trimethoprim, and trimethoprim. All 83 isolates (100%) were resistant to five or more classes of antimicrobials, and two strains exhibited resistance to ten antimicrobial agents. The average minimum inhibitory concentrations against V. parahaemolyticus of clindamycin, oxacillin, ticarcillin, and vancomycin were 55.9, 98.3, 499.3, and 44.3 ㎍/mL, respectively. These results provide new insight into the necessity for seawater sanitation in Gomso Bay and commercial fisheries, and provide evidence to help reduce the risk of contamination by antimicrobial-resistant bacteria.

• Food Science of Animal Resources
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• v.38 no.4
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• pp.759-767
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• 2018

The concern about the possibility of food can be a vehicle for the transmission of Clostridium difficile to humans has been raised recently due to the similarities among the strains isolated from patients, foods and food animals. In this study, therefore, the prevalence of C. difficile was investigated in beef and chicken meat products collected from 57 different butcher shops, markets and fast food restaurants in Sakarya province of Turkey. Two out of 101 samples (1.98%) was positive for C. difficile indicating a very low prevalence. The pathogen was isolated from an uncooked meatball sample and a cooked meat $d{\ddot{o}}ner$ sample, whereas not detected in chicken meat samples. The meatball isolate was resistant to vancomycin and tetracycline, while the cooked meat $d{\ddot{o}}ner$ isolate was resistant to vancomycin and metronidazole. Both isolates were sensitive to moxifloxacin and clindamycin. Toxins A and B were not detected. This study reveals the presence of C. difficile in further processed beef products in Turkey.