Staphylococcus aureus in the throat: A saprophyte or a pathogen?

144 industrial workers were investigated for the presence of Staphylococcus aureus in the upper respiratory tract because 53 of them had complained of chronic throat discomfort. Significantly more patients with subjective throat complaints harboured Staph. aureus in the nose (49.1%) and throat (32.1%) than patients without such symptoms (27.4% and 9.9%, respectively). No Staph. aureus were found in throat swab cultures from 21 randomly selected individuals working in a similar factory where no chronic throat discomfort was reported and only 2 throat carriers of Staph. aureus were found among 66 medical undergraduates investigated. The staphylocci belonged to several different phage type patterns and could not be recovered on sedimentation plates or from machines or products. In the light of these and other findings it was suggested that the staphylocci accentuated an already existing damage of the mucous membrane of the throat, but seemed not to be the primary cause of the discomfort.