Current Practice in Staphylococcus aureus Screening and Decolonization

We surveyed infectious disease physicians to determine their preoperative Staphylococcus aureus screening and decolonization practices. Sixty percent reported preoperative screening for S. aureus. However, specific screening and decolonization practices are highly variable, are focused almost exclusively on methicillin-resistant S. aureus, and do not include testing for mupirocin or chlorhexidine resistance. Infect Control Hosp Epidemiol 2011;32(10):1042-1044