A type of superbug has increased upwards of 700% in U.S. children since 2007, and it is associated with longer hospital stays and a trend toward a greater risk of death, a recent study in the Journal of the Pediatric Infectious Diseases Society reveals. [1]
The potentially deadly, drug-resistant “superbug,” carbapenem-resistant Enterobacteriaceae (CRE), is more widespread in U.S. hospitals than previously thought, an earlier-released study has found. [1]
Researchers looked for cases of infections caused by CRE in a sample of 4 U.S. hospitals – 3 in the Boston area and 1 in California – and identified numerous varieties of the bacterium. [2]
In the fight against antibiotic resistance, it’s all hands on deck. The clock is ticking and superbugs are spreading, but drug companies are reluctant to create new antibiotics because they’re not money-makers. Researchers may have found a way around that problem by modifying already-existing antibiotics to make them “blow up” deadly superbugs.
When people hear toxic shock syndrome (TSS) – a rare, life-threatening complication of certain types of bacterial infections – it is most often associated with tampon use. However, doctors report that only about 50% of cases actually arise from the use of tampons. The other 50% can come from various other sources. [1]
Scientists are working on finding solutions to the growing problem of antibiotic-resistant superbugs. The latest weapon in their arsenal is Tasmanian devil milk.
The Tasmanian devil is a marsupial, which means it’s a mammal that is born very early in its development and spends a few months growing and suckling inside their mothers’ pouches, just like kangaroos and opossums. [1]
We’ve all heard it before: if you drop food on the floor, you have 5 seconds to pick it up and eat it. The idea behind this is that it takes 5 seconds for the bacteria to make its way to the food and invade, but a new study suggests that this old wives’ tale is mostly untrue.
Superbugs becoming resistant to antibiotics have been all over the news in recent months. Though while we’ve been hearing about this often, wouldn’t be it cool to actually see it? Researchers at Harvard Medical School and Technion-Israel Institute of Technology have made a short film that actually depicts bacteria becoming resistant to antibiotics, allowing us to see evolution first-hand.
During the 17th century, London suffered a plague so severe that it killed almost 1/4 of its entire population in 18 months. Scientists haven’t been sure what exactly caused the widespread disease, until now. [1]
On September 2, the Food and Drug Administration (FDA) banned most antibacterial soaps and body washes currently on store shelves, saying the products pose health risks, and don’t work any better than regular soap. [1]
Both legal and illegal drugs are polluting streams in and around at least 1 major U.S. city, a new study reveals. This includes amphetamines, which are biologically active and highly addictive. [1]
The pollution comes at a high cost, ecologically. Areas in some streams have high enough concentrations of amphetamines to alter the bottom of the aquatic food chain.
Study author Sylvia Lee said:
