Green Tea Aids Antibiotics in Defeating Superbug Infections
A simple beverage enjoyed by people in many cultures throughout the world may make antibiotic medications three times more effective against dangerous superbugs like MRSA and Clostridium Difficile. Egyptian pharmacy researchers recently found that drinking green tea bolsters the antibacterial impact of many types of antibiotics, enhancing their ability to kill even virulent bacteria studied.
Researchers [...]
Cholesterol Lowering Drug May Render Staph Bacteria Harmless
In their efforts to develop new treatments for drug-resistant staph infections, scientists have obtained positive results using a cholesterol lowering drug that never made it to market. Researchers believe that cholesterol reducing compounds known as squalene synthase inhibitors may work on staph infections, including methicillin resistant staph, by rendering the bacteria vulnerable to the [...]
Staph Strain More Virulent Than MRSA Infecting Gay Men
As schools, prisons, and hospitals around the country struggle to prevent the spread of the superbug known as methicillin-resistant Staphylococcus aureus, or MRSA, a virulent newer strain is making inroads into gay communities in San Francisco, Boston, New York, and Los Angeles.
More drug-resistant than the MRSA seen in schools and gyms, infections caused by this [...]
Rapid MRSA Test Now Available in the U.S.
American medical professionals now have a new weapon in their anti-Staph arsenal. Last week the Food and Drug Administration approved a blood test that can detect the superbug known as methicillin-resistant Staphylococcus aureus, or MRSA, in under two hours.
The new test, manufactured by BD diagnostics, identified 100 percent of MRSA-positive specimens in clinical trials. [...]
Maryland Expected to Begin Tracking Hospital-Acquired MRSA Infections
The Maryland Health Care Commission, an independent state regulatory agency, is expected to vote today for the state to consider methicillin resistant Staphylococcus aureus, or MRSA, a reportable disease. There is currently no requirement for Maryland state and local health departments to track and record MRSA, the virulent superbug that can develop into a lethal [...]
Infection Control Experts Say Hospitals Not Doing Enough to Prevent MRSA
Half of American health care facilities are not doing enough to stop the spread of methicillin-resistant Staphylococcus aureus (MRSA), according to a poll of infection control professionals. The online survey conducted by the Association for Professionals in Infection Control and Epidemiology (APIC) revealed that while 59 percent of respondents work at facilities that are [...]
MRSA Related Hospitalizations Surge More Than 100%
Hospitalizations caused by the Staphylococcus aureus bacteria are on the rise in the United States, ballooning 62% between 1999 and 2005. During the same period, methicillin-resistant Staphylococcus aureus, or MRSA, accounted for a 119% jump in hospitalizations, reports a new study in the December 2007 issue of Emerging Infectious Diseases published by the Centers for [...]
National Handwashing Awareness Week
December 2 – 8, 2007 is National Handwashing Awareness Week in the United States, and schools across the country are taking the opportunity to remind students that handwashing saves lives. Handwashing is the most important measure individuals can take to prevent the spread of infection and illness, according to the Centers for Disease Control [...]
Staph Superbugs in the Spotlight on Capitol Hill
A hearing on Capitol Hill Wednesday examined the public health challenges of dealing with community-acquired methicillin-resistant Staphylococcus aureus, or MRSA. The House Committee on Oversight and Government Reform heard expert testimony from witnesses who addressed MRSA prevention, risk reduction, and the potential role of the government in combating the lethal superbug. In addition [...]
Vaccine Research Yields Promising Results in the Prevention of Lethal Staph Infections
One day soon, antibiotic resistant staph infections might be preventable with a simple vaccine.
Research scientists at The Scripps Research Institute have developed a vaccine that has been successful in blocking the onset of staph infections in laboratory mice. The promising vaccine will make it possible for the body to easily fight off staph by [...]