Page "Methicillin-resistant Staphylococcus aureus" Paragraph 33

In 1959 methicillin was licensed in England to treat penicillin-resistant S. aureus infections.

Just as bacterial evolution had allowed microbes to develop resistance to penicillin, strains of S. aureus evolved to become resistant to methicillin.

In 1961 the first MRSA isolates were reported in a British study, and between 1961-1967 there were infrequent hospital outbreaks in Western Europe and Australia.

The first United States hospital outbreak of MRSA occurred at the Boston City Hospital in 1968.

Between 1968-mid 1990s the percent of S. aureus infections that were caused by MRSA increased steadily, and MRSA became recognized as an endemic pathogen.

In 1974 2 % of hospital-acquired S. aureus infections could be attributed to MRSA.

The rate had increased to 22 % by 1995, and by 1997 the percent of hospital S. aureus infections attributable to MRSA had reached 50 %.