Superbugs being spread by poor hygiene in hospitals, nursing homes

By Mark Waghorn via SWNS

Superbugs are being spread by poor hygiene in hospitals and care homes, according to new research.

Antibiotic resistance is fuelled by bad practices in wards, operating theatres and other medical facilities.

Washing hands is simple, safe and cheap - and slashes numbers of potentially deadly infections.

A study across Europe found countries where staff made better use of alcohol-based hand rubs had fewer cases of E.coli.

The bacteria can cause respiratory and urinary problems and turn into life-threatening sepsis. It makes up nearly two-thirds of antibiotic-resistant infections.

Lead author Dr. Kristofer Wollein Waldetoft, of the Georgia Institute of Technology, Atlanta, said: "The importance of hygiene, especially hand hygiene, is well appreciated by health care professionals, but compliance has nonetheless been shown to be poor.

"There is thus the opportunity to improve on this important, yet simple, aspect of resistance management."

The findings were based on data collected at 691 long-term care establishments in 19 countries in 2013.

An analysis showed the importance of staff keeping hospitals and other facilities like nursing homes clean.

Using training and procedures will stop patients from acquiring resistant bacteria from others.

It will prevent the explosive amplifications that accelerate the spread of drug-resistant diseases.

By 2050, infections like MRSA (methicillin-resistant staphylococcus aureus) and C diff (clostridium difficile) could claim ten million lives each year.

The World Health Organisation says they are one of the biggest dangers facing mankind.

The heyday of antibiotic discovery was in the 1950s and 1960s. The last one that made it into doctors’ hands dates back to 1987. Microbes have since become very resistant.

Added Dr. Wollein Waldetoft: "Healthcare hygiene is a cornerstone of good clinical practice.

"It is also key to the management of antibiotic resistance by protecting patients from the acquisition of resistant strains."

Resistance is acquired by mutating the bacterial target the antibiotic is directed against, inactivating the drugs or pumping them out.

The list of bacteria that are becoming resistant to treatment with all available antibiotic options is growing.

Few new drugs are in the pipeline, creating a pressing need for new classes of antibiotics to prevent public health crises.

There is wide concern the world is cruising into a "post-antibiotic" era.

It could leave many common infections untreatable and make many staples of modern medicine – including surgery, chemotherapy and organ transplants – impossible.

The study is published in the journal Evolution, Medicine and Public Health.