Comparative Susceptibility to Triclosan and Antibiotics among Staphylococcus Isolates from Southern Vancouver Island

The increase of multiple-antibiotic resistant staphylococci has resulted in infections that are becoming challenging to cure. In hopes of preventing the spread of these opportunistic pathogens, there has been a rise in the use of triclosan - containing products within the community. It has been proposed that the abuse of these antimicrobial products may lead to resistance. The main purpose of this study was to determine the different levels of triclosan, (2,4,4’-trichloro-2’-hydroxydiphenyl ether), susceptibility among sixty-six Staphylococcus isolates recovered from Southern Vancouver Island. This was accomplished by determining their minimum inhibitory concentration (MIC) values using the microdilution broth method. Among the Staphylococcus isolates, 1.5% had a MIC value of 8mg/L, 74.2% had a MIC value of 6mg/L, 16.7% had a MIC value of 4mg/L, 3.0% had a MIC value of 2mg/L and 4.5% had a MIC value of 1mg/L or less. When compared to previous studies it appeared that the levels of triclosan resistance are increasing over time. In addition, a comparison between methicillin-resistant Staphylococcus aureus (MRSA) and the coagulase-negative Staphylococcus isolates (CoNS) revealed no significant difference in the levels of triclosan resistance. Finally, the sample data indicates that there was no evident correlation between antibiotic and triclosan resistance.