Nasal carriage of methicillin-resistant Staphylococcus aureus in cattle attending the slaughterhouse in Ouagadougou, Burkina Faso

Background: Staphylococcus aureus is an important pathogen that has been identified as an infectious agent in food animals and workers exposed to it. Methicillin-resistant Staphylococcus aureus (MRSA) is a public health problem. It is important to know all the origins of this pathogen in order to limit its spread in the population. The aim of this study was to investigate the nasal carriage of MRSA in farm animals such as cattle slaughtered at the Ouagadougou cold-storage abattoir. Methods: MRSA was isolated from nasal swabs taken from cattle. MRSA was determined by the MRSA/SAID chromogenic medium, while antibiotic susceptibility of isolates was determined by the agar diffusion method. A total of 587 samples were taken during the study. Results: The proportion of methicillin-resistant Staphylococcus aureus (MRSA) among the isolates was 24.04% (139/587). Isolates showed high antimicrobial resistance to Fusidic acid (94.24%), Penicylline (92.81%), Cefoxitin (92.09%), Clindamycin (85.61%) and Levofloxacin (53.24%). Low levels of antimicrobial resistance were recorded with chloramphenicol (12.23%), erythromycin (11.51%), gentamycin (2.16%) and Fosfomycin (0.72%). Conclusion: The results show that cattle are a likely source not only of MRSA, but also of antibiotic-resistant strains. It is therefore necessary to control the use of antibiotics on the farm and monitor animals closely to minimize the risk of disseminating resistant pathogensز