[Activity of vancomycin, teicoplanin and linezolid in methicillin resistant coagulase-negative Staphylococci isolates from paediatric blood cultures].

INTRODUCTION: Coagulase-negative-Staphylococci (CNS) are the major cause of bacteraemia and sepsis in newborns. CNS methicillin resistance and its loss of sensitivity to glycopeptide antibiotics, make treatment significantly more difficult in positive cocci infections.

OBJECTIVE: To study MIC vancomycin, teicoplanin and linezolid in different species of CNS methicillin resistant isolates from blood cultures from paediatric patients.

METHODS: Clinically relevant CNS methicillin resistant isolates from paediatric blood cultures from different hospitalization wards were tested. The isolates were identified by biochemical tests by means in the Combo panels 31 of MicroScan (Dade Behring, Siemens). Resistance to oxacillin and susceptibility to vancomycin, teicoplanin and linezolid were tested by microdilution panels as cited above. We also tested teicoplanin and linezolid sensitivity using Etest.

RESULTS: 50 methicillin resistant strains were isolated: 37 (74%)S. epidermidis, 7 (14%) S. hominis, 4 (8%) S. haemolyticus and 2 (4%) Staphylococcus spp. 26 strains were observed with reduced susceptibility to vancomycin MIC = 2 mg/L, (22 S. epidermidis, 2 S. haemolyticus and 2 Staphylococcus spp.) and 21 strains with loss of susceptibility to teicoplanin, MIC = 4-16 mg/L (20 S. epidermidis and 1 S. haemolyticus). No CNS linezolid resistant was found.

CONCLUSIONS: There is a linear correlation between increased vancomycin MIC and teicoplanin MIC. There is a statistically significant difference (p <0.001) in the MIC of teicoplanin in the vancomycin group = 2 mg/L with respect to the vancomycin group ≤ 1 mg/L. We also observed very low levels of linezolid MIC for all strains.