Characterization of veterinary hospital-associated isolates of Enterococcus species in Korea

Abstract

Possible cross-transmission of hospital-associated Enterococci between human patients, medical staff, and hospital environment has been extensively studied. However, limited information is available for veterinary hospital-associated Enterococcus isolates. This study investigated the possibility of cross-transmission of antibiotic-resistant Enterococci between dog patients, their owners, veterinary staff, and hospital environment. Swab samples (n=465) were obtained from five veterinary hospitals in Seoul, Korea, during 2011. Forty three Enterococcus strains were isolated representing seven enterococcal species. E. faecalis and E. faecium were the most dominant species (16 isolates each, 37.2%). Although slight differences in the antibiotic resistance profiles were observed between the phenotypic and the genotypic data, our antibiogram analysis demonstrated high prevalence of the multiple drug-resistant (MDR) isolates of E. faecalis (10/16 isolates, 62.5%) and E. faecium (12/16 isolates, 75.0%). Pulsed-field gel electrophoretic comparison of the MDR isolates revealed three different clonal sets of E. faecalis and a single set of E. faecium, which were isolated from different sample groups or dog patients at the same or two separate veterinary hospitals. These results imply a strong possibility of cross-transmission of the antibiotic-resistant enterococcal species between animal patients, owners, veterinary staff, and hospital environment.