Drug-resistant superbug spreading in hospitals: Study

Researchers from University of Melbourne, Australian have found that superbug resistant to all known antibiotics and can cause severe infections or even death is spreading undetected through hospital wards across the world. They have discovered three variants of multidrug-resistant superbug in bacteria known as Staphylococcus epidermidis in samples collected from 10 countries, including strains in Europe that cannot be controlled by any drug currently in the market.

Key Facts

Scientists have found that bacteria known as Staphylococcus epidermidis is related to better-known and more deadly MRSA superbug. This bacterium is found naturally on human skin and most commonly infects elderly or patients who have had prosthetic materials implanted, such as catheters and joint replacements.
It can be deadly, but it is usually in patients who already are very sick in hospital and can be quite hard to eradicate and the infections can be severe. Some strains of Staphylococcus epidermidis bug have made mall change in its DNA that led to resistance to two of most common antibiotics.
These findings show urgent need for better understanding of how infections spread. Earlier, study had suggested some hospital superbugs are growing increasingly tolerant to alcohol-based disinfectants found in sanitisers  and handwashes used on hospital wards.

Month: Current Affairs - September, 2018