UK Hospital superbugs 'out of control'
Pastor Dale Morgan
UK Hospital superbugs 'out of control' as child MRSA cases rise to 150*
By Beezy Marsh, Health Correspondent
(Filed: 10/09/2006)
Nearly 150 babies and children last year suffered potentially fatal
blood infections after contracting the MRSA superbug in NHS hospitals,
Government research reveals.
The figure is double that of previous estimates, raising concerns that
MRSA is tightening its grip on the very young and that poor hospital
hygiene is allowing the superbug to spread.
Children with MRSA in their blood require emergency hospital treatment
to prevent blood poisoning and toxic shock, which can quickly lead to
organ failure and death. Premature babies receiving intravenous
treatment are at particular risk because MRSA is able to enter their
bloodstream through the tiny open wound required to administer drugs or
fluids.
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Preliminary results from the Health Protection Agency study, which will
be unveiled at the organisation's annual conference tomorrow, show that
more than three-quarters of the 147 youngsters affected since the
research began last year were less than a year old. Of those, four out
of 10 were under the age of one month.
Dr Alan Johnson, a researcher and microbiologist, said: "We have
provisionally seen 147 cases of MRSA bacteraemia in children reported to
us. This is very much an interim picture because we are still getting
questionnaires from paediatricians."
He suggested that enhanced surveillance explained much of the rise, but
said that the study had been extended for another year.
However, Dr Mark Enright, reader in microbiology at Imperial College
London, said: "If you are getting nearly 150 bloodstream infections in
children, that is an awful lot and it means things are getting out of
control."
He added that, because bloodstream infections usually account for about
20 per cent of all MRSA cases, it was possible that as many as 750
children each year are contracting the superbug.