Abstract

This study aims to highlight the role of Panton and Valentine Leucocidin (PVL) in Staphylococcus aureus isolated from skin diseases in the peri-urban area of Benin. This study, conducted from November 2014 to December 2017, include 124 wound, abscess, furuncle, osteomyelitis and pyomyositis patients with staphylococcal in the commune of Zogbodomey. The 124 patients were profiled based on sociodemographic, clinical, microbiological, hematological and immunological parameters. Then CRP, SV, NB and CD4 were evaluated in for 4 weeks. The patients were predominantly female (sex ratio = 0.8) and the age group [1; 10 years] was the most represented (68.55%). Before the medical consultation, 54.03% of the patients first used traditional medicine to treat themselves and 10.28% used probabilistic antibiotic therapy. All the isolated S. aureus strains were isolated in pure culture in the cases of pyomyositis and 29.61% of S. aureus strains are resistant to the tested antibiotics. The isolated S. aureus strains are 100% sensitive to vancomycin and ciprofloxacin. LPV was produced by 73.98% of S. aureus strains and 89.15% are sensitive to methicillin. The follow-up showed that patients with LPV+ presented at the beginning of the treatment, a hyperleukocytosis (91.18%) and a decrease of CD4 compared to those with LPV. Furthermore, a progressive improvement of the immunological parameters was noted, which became routine in almost all patients in the 4th week of follow-up. LPV-producing S. aureus is essential in staphylococcal infections in the study area. The presence of methicillin-sensitive strains suggests the loss of resistance gene by horizontal transfer..

Key words: Benin, community, LPV, S. aureus, staphylococcal skin infections.