What Will '09 Bring In Medicine?, Expert On Likely Directions In Treatment Of Obesity, Cancer, Infections, Brain Diseases, And Aging Skin - CBS News.
More hospital patients die from staph infections than from AIDS each year. But there's a breakthrough in the way hospitals will treat those infections in the future. New prevention and treatment options for the bug known officially as methicillin-resisten staphylococcus aureus have emerged. One is a protective nasal gel (XF-73), designed to kill the microbes early on, upon contact, with every breath. Past anti-MRSA drugs focused on preventing bacteria from spreading or stunting the bacteria's growth. Also, surgeons began experimenting on animals this year with MRSA-fighting stitches coated with a virus that fights the MRSA bug but doesn't affect humans. Each tiny hole for stitches is a potential entry point for MRSA or other stubborn infections, so the idea of fortifying dozens of these sites to prevent chances of future infection is brilliant.
