MRSA Infection

‘Second skin’ helps burns doctors beat MRSA

‘Second skin’ helps burns doctors beat MRSA | The Sun |News.

BRITISH medics have created a revolutionary "second skin" treatment for wounds and burns - which slashes the risk of MRSA. The simple pad is applied to damaged tissue underneath a thin skin graft. It helps the body to heal - and also wards off superbugs, which are the biggest threat to patients with open wounds. The breakthrough could revolutionise treatment for blaze victims and injured soldiers. Smart Matrix pads bond with injured flesh while "growing" a new layer on top - keeping out bugs.

Early MRSA discharges called for

BBC NEWS | Health | Early MRSA discharges called for.

Hospitals should be discharging MRSA patients early to help ease pressure on intensive care beds as the flu season starts, doctors say. The MRSA Working Group has written to UK hospitals outlining how to ensure enough critical care beds are available this winter. They say as MRSA patients get squeezed into fewer beds by flu patients the number of MRSA cases could rise by 40%.

Swine flu sparks fears over MRSA

The Press Association: Swine flu sparks fears over MRSA.

A second wave of swine flu hitting Britain could lead to a rise in MRSA infections, medics have warned. A team of health experts said a swine flu pandemic would see a rise in hospital admissions and run the risk of a rise in MRSA. The MRSA Working Group, together with National Concern for Healthcare Infection and the Patients Association, is calling for the early discharge of patients from hospital to try and prevent a rise in the killer superbug. They said when hospital bed occupancy rates were high, MRSA infection rates increased. The group has written to all NHS hospital staff, reminding them to review their policy for the early discharge of MRSA patients.

1 in 8 trusts still failing infection control standards

Patients in half of trusts 'still struggle to see their GP' - Telegraph.

One in eight trusts are still failing infection control measures the regulator’s annual report also shows, despite rates of hospital superbugs like MRSA falling.

TheraDoc Announces New Surveillance Tool to Track MRSA

TheraDoc Announces New Surveillance Tool to Track MRSA and Other Potent Multidrug-Resistant Infectious Diseases | Reuters.

TheraDoc®, the leading provider of clinical decision support technology in healthcare, today announced that it has started beta testing of a new computerized patient surveillance tool that will help hospitals monitor and manage screening programs for multidrug-resistant organisms (MDROs), such as methicillin-resistant Staphylococcus aureus, or MRSA, which every year kills more people in the United States than AIDS. The MDRO Compliance Manager, designed for use with TheraDoc`s Infection Control Assistant® and its Expert System Platform® core technology, was created to help hospitals boost compliance with screening protocols by quickly identifying patients who should be tested and those who need to be isolated in order to reduce the spread of MRSA and other drug-resistant organisms to other patients, staff, and visitors.

Portable UV unit cuts MRSA contamination by 89%

Researchers Present 'a Novel, Automated, Efficient Environmental Disinfection Technology that Significantly Reduces C. difficile, VRE and MRSA Contamination' | Reuters.

In a study presented at the 49th Interscience Conference on Antimicrobial Agents and Chemotherapy (ICAAC), researchers used a mobile, automated UV device to decontaminate hospital rooms at the Cleveland Veterans Affairs (VA) Medical Center in Ohio and analyzed its ability to remove troublesome bacteria, including C. difficile spores. The device, known as Tru-D, uses reflected UVC germicidal energy to decontaminate air and surfaces, including those in primary shadows. Tru-D is manufactured by Lumalier in Memphis, Tennessee. Curtis Donskey, MD, Chair of the Infection Control Committee at the Cleveland VA Medical Center, concluded that Tru-D is a "novel method for cleaning hospital rooms...easy to use...and more effective than standard disinfection for removing hardy bacteria. The Tru-D device was able to decontaminate all surfaces in 40 hospital rooms, including hard-to-clean surfaces such as the undersides of tables." 18% of sites under the edges of bedside tables were still contaminated with MRSA after routine hospital cleaning, versus 0% after Tru-D use. Research revealed that disinfection with Tru-D reduced the frequency of positive MRSA and VRE cultures by 89%.

MRSA superbug still a threat in Irish Hospitals

Hospital superbug still a threat - National News, Frontpage - Independent.ie.

The figures for each hospital should be put in context, with larger hospitals that cater for greater numbers of patients with complex illnesses likely to experience more cases of MRSA. Moreover, even where patients are diagnosed with MRSA while in hospital, there is every chance that they could have picked it up before they were transferred, the report pointed out. The latest figures also confirm the continued threat from another superbug, MSSA. There were 470 reported cases of this infection in the first six months of the year. Resistant MRSA is resistant to a range of common antibiotics but doctors treating someone with MSSA have a greater choice of drugs to work on the patient. Both diseases can put a patient's life in danger and the death rate is about twice as high for people infected with MRSA as it is for those with MSSA.

Doubts raised over MRSA screening

BBC NEWS | Health | Doubts raised over MRSA screening.

The wisdom of screening all hospital patients for MRSA in England is being questioned by a leading expert. Dr Michael Millar, who is involved in the screening programme at a top London hospital trust, said the tests produced too many false results. He also said the risks and consequences of delayed operations and isolation were not fully explained to patients, the British Medical Journal reported. But the government said screening was an important part of the MRSA fight. It was announced by Prime Minister Gordon Brown as one of his flagship policies in the fight against superbugs - and has been implemented as MRSA rates have been falling.

Assume the worst re MRSA and your patients warns foot specialist

Handbook of Lower Extremity Infections » Blog Archive » Escalation vs. De-escalation Therapy.

During the History, I even specifically asked him “Have you or any of your family members ever had MRSA”. Now, you pretty much have to be living under a rock not to have heard about MRSA given all of the press coverage. His answer to me was a simple “What’s that”. With this History and that response I turned to the Resident and basically stated that I would “eat my hat” if this guy has MRSA. We started him on non-MRSA coverage. Well, I think you can imagine what happened. 48 hours later the C&S was returned as CA-MRSA (Picture below is from after initial I&D by my podiatric surgical colleague). From this point on I have started to practice DE-ESCALATION therapy. I start the vast majority of my patients, particularly those being hospitalized, as if they have MRSA and will de-escalate to remove the MRSA therapy if MSSA or no staph is found. Frankly, I don’t remember the last time I was even ABLE to de-escalate. That is how prevalent MRSA is in our local hospital.

Leeds doctors in MRSA warning over ward closure

Leeds doctors in superbug warning - Yorkshire Evening Post.

Hospital bosses have pledged that the same number of patients will be seen and dermatology beds would still be provided, but have not yet decided where these would be. However in-patients fear they could be placed on general wards and treated by staff not familiar with their conditions. Now three former LGI dermatologists have warned if that happens, it could lead to outbreaks of infections like MRSA. In a letter to politicians, retired consultant dermatologist Dr John Cotterill, retired professor of dermatology Prof Bill Cunliffe and emeritus professor of dermatology Prof Neville Rowell say they read about the plans to axe the ward with 'horror and disbelief'. "Even more alarming is the possibility that future patients will be treated in open medical or surgical wards," the letter reads. "One of us has had the experience of treating dermatological patients in an open ward at the LGI and in our opinion this is an efficient way of spreading infections such as MRSA to non-dermatological patients."

New alert on VRE

AdelaideNow... New alert on superbugs.

SUPERBUG cases in hospitals have doubled in six months and more than 100 patients are infected with a bacterium that cannot be killed by normal antibiotics. In April this year there were just 43 cases of vancomycin-resistant enterococci (VRE) in the major metropolitan hospitals. The Royal Adelaide Hospital had 20 cases then but, as of Friday, the number had soared to 60. Flinders Medical Centre has 34 cases, the Queen Elizabeth Hospital has seven and the Lyell McEwen Hospital one. SA Health said the number of hospital patients who test positive for VRE fluctuates daily as patients are admitted and discharged. SA Health chief executive officer Professor Paddy Phillips said VRE was becoming "part of the ecology" of hospitals everywhere.

Vioguard launches self-sanitizing computer keyboard that kills MRSA

Vioguard launches self-sanitizing computer keyboard that kills MRSA and healthcare-associated infections.

Harnessing the power and properties of ultraviolet light, Vioguard’s proprietary UVKB50 self-sanitizing keyboard is being introduced at a time when healthcare-associated infections (HAIs), including MRSA, strike an estimated 250,000 hospital patients in Canada each year. These “superbugs” kill an estimated 8,000 to 12,000 patients in Canada each year, according to 2008 statistics from Canadian Foundation for Infectious Diseases (CFID). Ultraviolet light is known to be affective against harmful microorganisms such as H1N1 flu, MRSA and molds. Based on independent laboratory testing, the ultraviolet light generated by the unit’s two powerful 25-watt germicidal fluorescent lamps killed more than 99.99% of harmful bacteria and viruses, including MRSA and flu, in less than 90 seconds.

Patients catching MRSA bugs on Sydney wards | The Daily Telegraph

Patients catching bugs on wards | The Daily Telegraph.

FOUR patients a week admitted to Sydney's biggest hospital, Westmead, are being infected with potentially lethal golden staph and MRSA infections picked up while in the wards, hospital documents show. An investigation into where every one of the reported 2392 hospital-acquired infections, some known as "superbugs", occurred in 2008 in public hospitals showed Westmead topped the list, but other big hospitals including John Hunter, Liverpool, Blacktown and Royal North Shore were not far behind.

Shake-up bid to beat MRSA

Shake-up bid to beat MRSA : Express & Star.

drastic shake-up of wards at Dudley’s Russells Hall Hospital will be introduced in a last-ditch attempt to hit infection targets. Eleven wards at the hospital will be re-organised as part of a drive to reduce cases of contagious diseases such as MRSA. The hospital is failing to meet NHS targets for the deadly infection for the third year running. Changes will begin tomorrow, dividing patients into those who have been pre-screened for infections and those who are admitted to hospital in an emergency. Previously, patients who fall into both categories may have been treated on the same ward .

Montrose man fighting MRSA to save his arm

Montrose man fighting MRSA to save his arm.

After almost losing his right arm in an accident 14 years ago a Montrose man is now battling once again to save the same arm. But now he's doing it alone after his health insurance dropped him after the first accident.

Enhanced surveillance of methicillin-resistant Staphylococcus aureus (MRSA) bacteraemia in children in the UK and Ireland -- Johnson et al., 10.1136/adc.2009.162537 -- Archives of Disease in Childhood

Enhanced surveillance of methicillin-resistant Staphylococcus aureus (MRSA) bacteraemia in children in the UK and Ireland -- Johnson et al., 10.1136/adc.2009.162537 -- Archives of Disease in Childhood.

Results: 265 episodes of MRSA bacteraemia were ascertained, involving 252 children. The overall incidence rate was 1.1 per 100,000 child population per year (95%CI 0.9-1.2): 61% of the children were aged <1 year (a rate of 9.7 cases per 100,000 population per year [95% CI 95% CI 8.2 – 11.4]) and 35% were <1 month. Clinical data were obtained from 115 cases. The clinical presentation varied, with fever present in only 16% of neonates compared with 72% of older children. A history of invasive procedure was common, with 32% having had intravascular lines and 13% having undergone surgery. Sixty-two per cent of patients for whom data were available were receiving high-dependency care (46% in SCBU/NICU and 16% in PICU). Of 93 MRSA isolates studied, 73% belonged to epidemic strains widely associated with nosocomial infection in the UK and Ireland. Conclusions: MRSA bacteraemia in children was relatively uncommon and was predominantly seen in very young children, often those receiving neonatal or paediatric intensive care. Bacteraemia predominantly involved well documented epidemic strains of MRSA associated with nosocomial infection.

Medicos and engineering students to fight high Indian MRSA infection rates

Medicos and engineering students join hands for research - Chennai - City - The Times of India.

A recent study by Dr Dilip Mathai, head of department of internal medicine, Christian Medical College, Vellore showed that one in four persons admitted to a hospital can acquire infections from the hospital. His study showed 33-44% of the patients admitted to Indian hospitals had MRSA in the blood stream. "No one knows whether they got it in the hospital or they bought it in with them. But it certainly is there in the hospital environment. But studies conducted in several countries showed that these bacteria are carried around by doctor's coats, ties and accessories," says Dr Rosy Vennilla, microbiologist, Stanley Medical College Hospital. For the last few months, students have been identifying sources of these clusters and collecting them. "They have drawn them from everywhere in the hospital. From bedspreads, equipment, clothes of doctors and nurses," she says. These samples would be taken to IIT-Madras, where associate professor R S Verma, department of biotechnology will guide engineering students to isolate them for genetic and molecular characterizations.

Scottish Hospital bug rate at record low

BBC NEWS | Scotland | Hospital bug rate at record low.

Rates of infection from Clostridium difficile and MRSA in Scotland have been cut, figures have shown. Infections of elderly people caused by C. diff have fallen to a record low, according to the quarterly Health Protection Scotland report. And cases of illness caused by the drug-resistant so-called superbug, MRSA have also dropped. The decreases were welcomed by Health Secretary Nicola Sturgeon, but she warned against complacency. C. diff rates have fallen 42% compared with the same period last year, while MRSA rates are down 25%.

Novartis Buys Global Rights to MRSA Antibiotic

Novartis Buys Global Rights to MRSA Antibiotic (Update1) - Bloomberg.com.

Novartis AG bought global rights to an experimental antibiotic from privately held Paratek Pharmaceuticals, adding a pill that may treat life-threatening infections caused by bacteria resistant to available medicines. The drug candidate, known as PTK 0796, may be taken in pill form, meaning patients can continue treatment after being discharged from the hospital, Basel, Switzerland-based Novartis said in a statement on Hugin newswire today. Financial terms weren’t disclosed. The therapy, which is in the final stage of clinical testing required for regulatory approval, showed better response rates in tests than Pfizer Inc.’s Zyvox for treating bacteria including the deadly methicillin-resistant Staphylococcus aureus, or MRSA, according to Novartis.

PVL linked with heightened S. aureus disease severity in children

PVL linked with heightened <I>S. aureus</I> disease severity in children.

Children with staphylococcal scarlet fever caused by Panton-Valentine leukocidin–positive Staphylococcus aureus strains had more exacerbated skin manifestations and greater systemic inflammatory responses compared with children who had strains that were negative for the cytotoxin. Stay connected - Sign Up for the E-mail News Wire! “Clinical improvement after incision and drainage was achieved for most children with staphylococcal scarlet fever caused by Panton-Valentine leukocidin (PVL)–positive methicillin-resistant S. aureus strains, despite treatment with an ineffective antibiotic,” wrote the researchers from the Tri-Service General Hospital at the National Defense Medical Center in Taipei, Taiwan.