The bacterium, staphylococcus aureus , is the cause of most
hospital infections, including pneumonia and blood poisoning. In America
alone some two million such infections develop every year.
Physicians had not faced the possibility of widespread, untreatable bacterial infections since penicillin came into general use in the 1940s. Since then, bacteria have shown a seemingly relentless ability to develop resistance to antibiotics. For example, by the 1950s almost half of known strains of staph aureus had grown resistant to penicillin. Scientists successfully gained the upper hand again with the introduction of methicillin in the 1960s, but in the 1970s some strains of staph had become resistant to this drug as well. Vancomycin, the last drug known to be effective against these other antibiotic-resistant strains, had proved effective for 30 years.
Discovery of this antibiotic-resistant strain prompted an instant worldwide alert among scientists and researchers. “We have a situation which is very worrisome,” commented Fred Tenover, laboratory chief for the hospital-infections branch of the U.S. Centers for Disease Control and Prevention. The newly isolated strain showed resistance to the last line of antibiotic defense for certain strains of bacteria. “If we're climbing the ladder,” said Mr. Tenover, “we're almost to the roof.”
Dr. Robert Haley, former head of the CDC's hospital-infections branch, added, “I can't emphasize enough: This is a major turn for the worse in the fight against infection.”
Researchers fear that this new strain could claim many lives in the years it takes to develop new effective antibiotics. (Sources: The Dallas Morning News, The Chicago Tribune .)
Physicians had not faced the possibility of widespread, untreatable bacterial infections since penicillin came into general use in the 1940s. Since then, bacteria have shown a seemingly relentless ability to develop resistance to antibiotics. For example, by the 1950s almost half of known strains of staph aureus had grown resistant to penicillin. Scientists successfully gained the upper hand again with the introduction of methicillin in the 1960s, but in the 1970s some strains of staph had become resistant to this drug as well. Vancomycin, the last drug known to be effective against these other antibiotic-resistant strains, had proved effective for 30 years.
Discovery of this antibiotic-resistant strain prompted an instant worldwide alert among scientists and researchers. “We have a situation which is very worrisome,” commented Fred Tenover, laboratory chief for the hospital-infections branch of the U.S. Centers for Disease Control and Prevention. The newly isolated strain showed resistance to the last line of antibiotic defense for certain strains of bacteria. “If we're climbing the ladder,” said Mr. Tenover, “we're almost to the roof.”
Dr. Robert Haley, former head of the CDC's hospital-infections branch, added, “I can't emphasize enough: This is a major turn for the worse in the fight against infection.”
Researchers fear that this new strain could claim many lives in the years it takes to develop new effective antibiotics. (Sources: The Dallas Morning News, The Chicago Tribune .)
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