Transmission of community-associated methicillin-resistant Staphylococcus aureus from breast milk in the neonatal intensive care unit.

Methicillin-resistant Staphylococcus aureus (MRSA) has become increasingly common in neonatal intensive care units and can lead to severe outcomes. Baby C, of a set of quadruplets, died of MRSA sepsis. The surviving siblings were colonized with MRSA. Expressed breast milk was fed to all infants; tested breast milk samples were all MRSA-positive. Pulsed field gel electrophoresis results of isolates from the infants and breast milk were indistinguishable.