Different trends of MRSA and VRE in a German hospital, 1999-2005.

Some of the clinically most menacing nosocomial pathogens are Methicillin-resistent Staphylococcus aureus (MRSA) and Vancomycin-resistent Enterococcus (VRE). During the last years both pathogens showed dramatic increases in colonization and infection rates in Germany. This study covers all patients positively tested for MRSA and VRE in a German University Hospital from 1999-2005. About 1,179 MRSA cases and 116 VRE cases have been reported. VRE was significantly associated with less infection, female gender, more death and higher nosocomial acquisition than MRSA. While MRSA rates increased impressively from 1999 to 2005 VRE rates decreased clearly. Assuming that compliance with hygienic measures is similar in dealing with MRSA and VRE it is quite unclear why these two major pathogens differ so much in their trends. One possibility is that the MRSA problem has been caused by an increasing share of nonnosocomially acquired MRSA.