A University of Iowa study released January 19, 2012, found an alarming number of retail pork samples containing methicillin-resistant Staphylococcus aureus (MRSA). Researchers with the College of Public Health and Institute for Agriculture and Trade Policy examined 395 samples of retail pork from stores in Iowa, Minnesota, and New Jersey. Staphylococcus aureus was found in 64.8% of the samples, with the methicillin-resistant variety found in 6.6% of the samples.

David Wallinga, MD, expressed concern with these findings. At 6.6%, retail pork is 4 times more likely to be carrying MRSA than the average American person. Wallinga notes that the antibiotic-resistant bacteria are likely spreading through our food system and in relation to industrial farming practices. Wallinga notes that, in 2005, MRSA accounted for about 280,000 infections and 19,000 hospital deaths per year. The incidence of MRSA outside hospitals has been steadily increasing since then. The Iowa group has been focused on antibiotics in animal feed and antibiotic-resistant bacteria on farms and in our food supply for over a decade.

Researchers report an additional study out of Michigan shows that using antibiotics in pig feed increases the number of antibiotic-resistant genes in the gastrointestinal tract of pigs. Further information is needed to determine if use of antibiotics in animal feeds actually is increasing the incidence of antibiotic-resistant infections, including MRSA. If evidence supports these concerns, nurses certainly need to be advised.

Source: Ranallo A. Antibiotic resistant MRSA bacterial widely present in retail pork, new study says. Institute for Agriculture and Trade Policy press release. January 20, 2012. Available at http://www.iatp.org/files/2012_01_20_AntibioticResistantMRSA.pdf. Accessed March 8, 2012

Submitted by: Robin E. Pattillo, PhD, RN, CNL, news editor at [email protected].