Objective To understand the carriage rate of methicillinresistant staphylococcus aureus (MRSA) among the patients visiting the North China Oilfield Hospital. Methods From May 2010 to July 2011, a total of 502 patients visiting the North China Oilfield Hospital were recruited and surveyed for nasal carriage of MRSA. 219 patients (44%) were classified into the group with risk factors for MRSA acquisition and 283 (56%) patients into the group without risk factors. Nasal swab samples were collected with sterile swabs in all patients and sent to microbiological laboratory for culture. The susceptibility was tested using the diskdiffusion method. Results ① The overall prevalence rates of S. aureus and MRSA were 17.3% and 3.8% respectively. The carriage rates of S. aureus and MRSA in the patients with risk factors were significantly higher than those without risk factors respectively (P<0.05). ② The colonization rates of S. aureus and MRSA in patients with catheters/tubes retention were significantly higher than those without (P=0.001, P=0.002, respectively). ③ The susceptibilities to clindamycin, doxycyclin, and erythromycin of MRSA isolates from patients without risk factors were significantly higher than those from the patients with risk factors (P=0.041, P=0.05, P=0.041, respectively). Conclusion The nasal carriage rate of MRSA in patients with risk factors for acquisition is significantly higher than that in those without risk factors. Catheters or tubes retention is a risk factor for MRSA colonization.