Staphylococcus

Background

Staphylococcus is a Gram-positive bacteria which includes several species that can cause a wide variety of infections through infection or the production of toxins.

Coagulase-Positive

The main coagulase-positive staphylococcus is Staphylococcus aureus, although not all strains of Staphylococcus aureus are coagulase positive.

• Staph. aureus MSSA
• Staph. aureus MRSA
• Staph. aureus CA-MRSA

Coagulase-Negative

• S. epidermidis is a commensal of the skin, but can cause severe infections in immunosuppression|immune-suppressed patients and those with central lines.

• S. saprophyticus is part of the normal vaginal flora, is predominantly implicated in urinary tract (e.g. UTI, pyelonephritis) infections.

• Rarely S. lugdunensis, S. schleiferi, and S. caprae cause infection.

See Also

• Microbiology (Main)