Q&A: Steno superbug

Link: Q&A: Steno superbug | Society | guardian.co.uk.

What is this new superbug? Stenotrophomonas maltophilia, or Steno, is a bacterium that thrives in moist environments such as taps and shower heads and is difficult to remove by normal cleaning. The bug can pose a serious risk to weak or frail hospital patients if it grows on medical equipment. Why is it in the news? A team of scientists from Bristol University and the Wellcome Trust Sanger Institute, Cambridgeshire, has found Steno has the capacity to rapidly develop drug resistance. The researchers found some strains of Steno are resistant to all available antibiotics, making it at least as hard to treat as the two deadliest superbugs, MRSA and Clostridium difficile (C diff).