Panton-Valentine leukocidin-producing methicillin-Sensitive Staphylococcus aureus as a cause for recurrent, contagious skin infections in young, healthy travelers returned from a tropical country: a new worldwide public health problem?

Skin infections associated with visits to tropical countries are well known. In most of the cases, the infection is caused by Staphylococcus aureus. After a sufficient antibiotic treatment, the skin infections resolve without any sequelae. But several patients suffer from recurrent skin infections. Panton-Valentine leukocidin (PVL) is a cytotoxin produced by S aureus, which is associated with severe necrotic skin lesions and with a high contagiosity.