Advances in Microbiology, 2018, 8, 270-285 http://www.scirp.org/journal/aim ISSN Online: 2165-3410 ISSN Print: 2165-3402 DOI: 10.4236/aim.2018.84018 Apr. 30, 2018 270 Advances in Microbiology Evaluation of Antimicrobial Susceptibility by Staphylococcus aureus Isolated from the Nutrition Service of a Teaching Hospital Marilda Moreira da Silva 1,2 , Giovana Nicolete 3 , Barbara Dayene Lopes 1 , Carolina Hiromi Morita 1 , Joyce Marinho de Souza 3 , Lizziane Kretli Winkelstroter 1,3,4 , Marcus Vinícius Pimenta Rodrigues 2,3,4* 1 Nutrition Course, Faculty of Health Sciences, São Paulo Western University-UNOESTE, Presidente Prudente, Brazil 2 Master in Environment and Regional Development, São Paulo Western University-UNOESTE, Presidente Prudente, Brazil 3 Biomedical Sciences Course, Faculty of Health Sciences, São Paulo Western University-UNOESTE, Presidente Prudente, Brazil 4 Master in Health Sciences, São Paulo Western University-UNOESTE, Presidente Prudente, Brazil Abstract The bacteria Staphylococcus aureus is found in the nasal passages, mouth and skin of the human population and stands out among foodborne diseases. Some causes of foodborne illness are related with food, handlers, and utensils contamination in a hospital’s nutrition service. The aim of this study was to investigate the presence of S. aureus in food handlers, equipment, coun- ter-tops and utensils of the nutrition service of a teaching hospital. Samples of the environment, hands and nasal mucosa of employees of a nutrition service were collected with two sterile swabs, in 2016, March and June. A total of 134 samples were obtained, which were submitted to characterization tests Bio- chemistry and morphotinorial (gram staining, catalase and coagulase tests in tube), phenotypic evaluation by drug diffusion technique and D-test ap- proach, and the biofilm phenotype characterization by culture on Congo Red Agar. Results showed high rates of S. aureus colonization, mainly in the kitchen, high frequency of antimicrobial resistance, especially erythromycin and the presence of multi-resistant microorganisms. Large number of positive samples was also found for biofilm production, with totality for the samples of handlers. We highlight the relevance of the data in virtue of the serious con- sequences and risks that can be triggered in the hospital environment. Keywords Staphylococcus aureus, Multiresistance, Contamination, Manipulators How to cite this paper: da Silva, M.M., Nicolete, G., Lopes, B.D., Morita, C.H., de Souza, J.M., Winkelstroter, L.K. and Rodrigues, M.V.P. (2018) Evaluation of Antimicrobial Susceptibility by Staphylo- coccus aureus Isolated from the Nutrition Service of a Teaching Hospital. Advances in Microbiology, 8, 270-285. https://doi.org/10.4236/aim.2018.84018 Received: February 27, 2018 Accepted: April 27, 2018 Published: April 30, 2018 Copyright © 2018 by authors and Scientific Research Publishing Inc. This work is licensed under the Creative Commons Attribution International License (CC BY 4.0). http://creativecommons.org/licenses/by/4.0/ Open Access