Bacitracin-Resistant Clone of Streptococcus pyogenes Isolated from Pharyngitis Patients in Belgium

ABSTRACT We report 16 bacitracin-resistant Streptococcus pyogenes isolates recovered from pharyngitis patients in Belgium, 14 of which belonged to a particular emm type ( emm 28). All 16 isolates were constitutively resistant to macrolides and carried erm (B). The emergence of a bacitracin-resistant S. pyogenes clone raises questions about the continued reliability of bacitracin susceptibility testing for S. pyogenes identification.