Nasal Carriage of Multidrug-Resistant Staphylococcus aureus Among University Students

Authors

• Leigha Premo, St. John Fisher University
• Sidney China, St. John Fisher University
• Romy Stoffel, St. John Fisher University
• Khayriyyah Mohd Hanafiah, St. John Fisher UniversityFollow

Document Type

Poster Presentation

Publication Date

4-17-2026

Keywords

fsc2026

Abstract

This study focused on determining how common it is for students at Fisher to have the bacteria Staphylococcus aureus (SA) in their nasal cavity. While this bacteria can be carried by healthy individuals without showing signs of illness, carrying this bacteria may be a risk factor for future opportunistic infection. This bacteria is also known for being resistant to antibiotics and is the cause both community and hospital-acquired methicillin-resistant S. aureus (MRSA) infections. This study collected survey responses and nasal swabs from students attending Fisher in Fall 2024 - Spring 2025 (n=81)  (IRB approval no.:4419-081524-01).

Our analysis shows that, ~71.6% of the bacteria grown from nasal swabs of students were coagulase negative staphylococcus species (CoNS), ~24.7% were SA and ~3.7% were MRSA (resistant to methicillin and other penicillin type antibiotics). Three non-MRSA isolates had inducible clindamycin and erythromycin resistance.

Comments

Poster presented at the 2026 Fisher Showcase, St. John Fisher University, April 17, 2026.

Publication Information

Premo, Leigha; China, Sidney; Stoffel, Romy; and Hanafiah, Khayriyyah Mohd, "Nasal Carriage of Multidrug-Resistant Staphylococcus aureus Among University Students" (2026). Fisher Showcase 2026. Paper 142.
https://fisherpub.sjf.edu/fsc2026/142

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