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 [...]
Maryland Teacher’s Death Linked to MRSA
A Montgomery County, Maryland teacher died on Sunday, December 9, 2007 due to complications related to the dangerous superbug known as methicillin-resistant Staphylococcus aureus, or MRSA. Merry King, 48, was a resident of Silver Spring and taught special education students at Herbert Hoover Middle School in Rockville.
Rockville, Maryland is close to Baltimore, the area [...]
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 [...]
West Virginia Man Sues after Contracting MRSA During Hospitalization
The superbug known as methicillin-resistant Staphylococcus aureus, or MRSA, is at the center of a medical malpractice suit filed against Charleston Area Medical Center in southern West Virginia on November 14, 2007. The lawsuit filed in Kanawha Circuit Court alleges that the facility’s negligence and carelessness caused Gerald George of Dunbar, West Virginia to [...]
Drug Resistant Staph Infections Cause Two Deaths in the Texas Panhandle
Two Texas panhandle residents died from methicillin-resistant Staphylococcus aureus, or MRSA, during the last two weeks, the Texas Department of State Health Services has reported. Health officials have not released the names of the two deceased individuals, but one is believed to be 13-year-old Mason Chandler Frost of Borger who died on November 9, [...]
Providence Schools Bus Driver Diagnosed with MRSA
A Providence, Rhode Island school bus driver has developed the superbug infection known as methicillin-resistant Staphylococcus aureus, or MRSA, a Providence schools spokesperson announced Thursday. The driver’s usual route on bus number 136 carries students to Carl Lauro and Martin Luther King, Jr. Elementary Schools.
The bus driver sought medical attention for the staph [...]
New Superbug Research Reveals Why Community-Acquired MRSA is So Virulent
Researchers studying the surging epidemic of methicillin-resistant Staphylococcus (MRSA) infections in our communities have discovered that the bacteria have developed the ability to eliminate our natural immune system defenses. A peptide secreted by community-acquired MRSA (CA-MRSA) dissolves white blood cells called neutrophils, our primary defense against bacterial infection, according to the study published this [...]
MRSA Outbreak Reported at Lafayette High School in Lexington, Kentucky
Three confirmed cases of methicillin-resistant Staphylococcus aureas (MRSA) have been reported to administrators at Lafayette High School in Lexington, Kentucky. MRSA is the virulent staph infection that made headlines last month when it claimed the lives of four American children.
The three infected students are under the care of a physician. School officials are working [...]
Illinois School Bans Relatives of Boy Infected with MRSA
A Chicago area elementary school has banned three children from attending school because a 13-year-old member of their family is infected with methicillin-resistant Staphylococcus aureus, or MRSA, MSNBC reported. The children show no signs of infection, but school officials fear they might be contagious.
After the infected boy, Pheron, and his mother appeared on television [...]
Outbreak of Antibiotic-Resistant Staph in Portage, Indiana
In Portage, Indiana, two Portage High School students have confirmed cases of methicillin-resistant Staphylococcus aureus, or MRSA. Two additional students were sent home on Wednesday, but have not reported back to the school at this time. Portage High School parents were informed of the infections via a recorded telephone message on Thursdsay.
MRSA is [...]