NEISSERIA-MENINGITIDIS WITH DECREASED SUSCEPTIBILITY TO PENICILLIN INSASKATCHEWAN, CANADA

Moderately penicillin-resistant Neisseria meningitidis is rare in Nort h America, We report an outbreak of meningococcal disease in Saskatoon , Saskatchewan, Canada, with serogroup C N. meningitidis. The MICs of penicillin ranged from 0.12 to 0.25 mu g/ml, and all isolates showing decreased susceptibility had identical genomic fingerprints when they were compared by pulsed-field gel electrophoresis. Our data indicate t hat N. meningitidis that is moderately resistant to penicillin is prev alent in Saskatchewan, Canada.