STAPHYLOCOCCUS-AUREUS IN THE ANTERIOR NARES AND SUBUNGUAL SPACES OF THE HANDS IN ATOPIC-DERMATITIS

We examined the prevalence of Staphylococcus aureus in the anterior na res and the subungual spaces of the hands of patients with atopic derm atitis to determine whether the presence of S. aureus at these sites m ay contribute to the aggravation of the dermatitic skin lesions. The p revalence of S. aureus in the anterior nares of patients with atopic d ermatitis was over five times higher than that in the anterior nares o f patients with other skin diseases or in healthy adult controls, and the prevalence of S. aureus in the subungual spaces was 10 times highe r in patients with atopic dermatitis than in those with other skin dis eases or in controls. Both the anterior nares and the subungual spaces of the hands are important reservoirs of S. aureus in atopic dermatit is. The phage type of S. aureus strains isolated from the anterior nar es is similar to that of the strains isolated from the subungual space s.