OBJECTIVES: To determine the incidence of MRSA among admitted hand patients at UP-PGH from 2005 to 2010 and determine the antibiotic susceptibility pattern.

METHODS: Records of admitted hand patients of all ages were identified and wound culture results were reviewed. A total of 482 wound cultures from the S-year period were examined.

RESULTS AND CONCLUSION: From an initial decreasing trend, there was a sharp increase in incidence of MRSA hand infections from 2008 (11.8%) to 2009 (22.5%).Vancomycin had the highest number of susceptible cases from 2005 to 2008, but dropped quite sharply to the least number of susceptible cases in 2010. Chloramphenicol and erythromycin had the highest number of susceptible MRSA hand cases in recent years.