Over the last two decades, bacterial resistance to antibiotics has become widely recognized as a serious problem, making many diseases increasingly difficult if not impossible to treat. Methicillin-resistant Staphylococcus aureus (MRSA) has been present in hospital settings, known as healthcare-associated MRSA(HA-MRSA) for several decades.
More recently, MRSA strains have emerged outside the hospital, in community settings among otherwise healthy individuals. These strains are referred to as community-associated MRSA (CA-MRSA), and they now account for the majority of staphylococcal infections seen in the hospital emergency department or clinics.
