eng Science and Education Publishing American Journal of Epidemiology and Infectious Disease 2013-08-15 1 1 24 26 10.12691/ajeid-1-3-2 AJEID2013132 article Alo Moses 1 Ugah Uchenna ugahuchennaiyioku@gmail.com 2 Okoro Nworie 2 Department of Biological Science, Federal University Ndufu-Alike Ikwo, Ebonyi State Department of Medical Laboratory Science, Ebonyi State University Abakaliki, Ebonyi State Staphylococcus aureus is a successful pathogen due to a combination of numerous bacteria immune-evasive strategies. The increased incidence of MRSA has led to more frequent use of vancomycin, the drug commonly relied upon as last resorts for treating MRSA infections. As a consequence, selective pressure was established that led to the emergence of strains of S. aureus and other species of Staphylococci with decreased susceptibility to vancomycin and other glycopeptides. The aim of our study was to determine the prevalence of vancomycin resistant S. aureus among clinical isolates in a tertiary health care facility in Abakaliki metropolis, the capital of Ebonyi State, South Eastern Nigeria. The susceptibility of S. aureus strains to vancomycin was determined by Kirby-Bauer disk diffusion technique as well as by tube dilution method. Among the 355 S. aureus isolates tested, 272 (76.6%) isolates were susceptible (zone diameter ≥ 15mm, MIC 0.5-2μg/ml) 64 (18.0%) isolates were intermediate (zone diameter≤ 14mm, MIC 4-8μg/ml) while 19 (5.4%) isolates were resistant (zone diameter≤14mm, MIC ≥ 16μg/ml). When subjected to statistical analysis, this prevalence rate was statistically non-significant (p < 0.05). But, nevertheless, clinically relevant considering the overall implication in the transfer of resistant gene. http://pubs.sciepub.com/ajeid/1/3/2/ajeid-1-3-2.pdf vancomycin resistance Staphylococcus aureus Abakaliki