Dispersal ofStaphylococcus aureusInto the Air Associated With a Rhinovirus Infection

Abstract

AbstractObjective:To determine whether healthy adult nasal carriers ofStaphylococcus aureuscan disperseS. aureusinto the air after rhinovirus infection.Design:We investigated the “cloud” phenomenon among adult nasal carriers ofS. aureusexperimentally infected with a rhinovirus. Eleven volunteers were studied for 16 days in an airtight chamber wearing street clothes, sterile garb, or sterile garb plus surgical mask; rhinovirus inoculation occurred on day 2. Daily quantitative air, nasal, and skin cultures forS. aureus; cold symptom assessment; and nasal rhinovirus cultures were performed.Setting:Wake Forest University School of Medicine, Winston-Salem, North Carolina.Participants:Wake Forest University undergraduate or graduate students who had persistent nasal carriage ofS. aureusfor 4 or 8 weeks.Results:After rhinovirus inoculation, dispersal ofS. aureusinto the air increased 2-fold with peak increases up to 34-fold. Independent predictors ofS. aureusdispersal included the time period after rhinovirus infection and wearing street clothes (P< .05). Wearing barrier garb but not a mask decreased dispersal ofS. aureusinto the air (P< .05).Conclusion:Virus-induced dispersal ofS. aureusinto the air may have an important role in the transmission ofS. aureusand other bacteria.