Carriage patterns of Staphylococcus aureus in a healthy non-hospital population of adults and children.

Bacteriological examination of healthy school children and adults for Staphylococcus aureus by weekly swabbing of nose, throat and hands over extended periods demonstrated a general transition from persistent to transient carrier status between 10 and 20 years of age. Adult transient carriers were commoner among manual than office workers and frequently yielded biochemically atypical isolates, possibly because of acquired resistance to typical strains. Nasal carriage was commonest, but children frequently yielded the organism from both nose and throat.