Scientists Warn of Drug-Resistant E.coli
Posted on: Tuesday, 19 February 2008, 04:55 CST
Canadian scientists warned that infections from antibiotic resistant E.coli bacteria are spreading beyond hospitals into the greater population. The scientists strongly urged global health officials to begin monitoring the spread of the bacteria to determine which strains are responsible for certain infections, and whether different antibiotics might be more effective as treatments.E.coli (Escherichia coli) is a very common bacteria found in the human gut, and is normally harmless. However, some strains, including those linked to food poisoning, are serious and can cause fatal blood poisoning, cystitis and deadly septicemia. The elderly are most at risk, particularly those resident in nursing homes.
In the study, Dr. Johann Pitout and Dr. Kevin Laupland, both from the University of Calgary in Canada, looked at a strain of E. coli that produces enzymes that give the bug resistance to antibiotic drugs.
Bolstering the warnings are reports from several countries in recent years of antibiotic-resistant E.coli. Health officials are particularly concerned about the drug-resistant strains reported in Spain, Israel, Italy, Greece, the UK and Canada. In these cases, the E.coli infection was resistant to four key antibiotics.
Researchers said it is vital to begin tracking these dangerous strains.
In Britain, BBC News reported that blood poisoning cases caused by E . coli more than doubled between 1995-2005, and a small but growing number of those were drug-resistant. An examination of 54 deaths in the county of Shropshire, all of whom had a resistant strain, found the bug had directly contributed to 20% of these deaths. The bacterium was also found responsible for a severe outbreak of urinary tract infections between 2003 and 2004. The UK's Health Protection Agency (HPA) said it has been investigating these infections for several years.
The Canadian researchers compared the E.coli threat with that of community-acquired MRSA, which is emerging as a public health problem in many parts of the world. MRSA, short for Methicillin-resistant Staphylococcus aureus, is a type of bacteria that is resistant to certain antibiotics.
In the U.S., this community-acquired MRSA is spread outside medical facilities through skin-to-skin contact, and accounts for 12% of all MRSA cases. It affects both the young and the elderly.
E. coli infections "are currently rare, but it is possible, in the near future, clinicians will be confronted with hospital types of bacteria causing infections in patients from the community - a scenario very similar to that of community-acquired MRSA," the scientists wrote in a report.
"We agree with the authors that antibiotic resistance is an important issue affecting public health,” the U.K.’s HPA said in a BBC News report.
"There is a need for sustained research into both the origin of these E.coli strains as well as the number of people who carry ESBL-producing E.coli in their gut, to help gain a better understanding of the risk factors for people acquiring infections; how they are transmitted and to help develop better control measures."
Dr Andrew Berrington of Sunderland Royal Hospital said, "It does seem to be true that what was previously regarded as a hospital problem is now being seen in the community as well. These bacteria are not, as far as is known, excessively virulent, but they are becoming more resistant to antibiotics and therefore harder to treat."
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Photo Caption: Low-temperature electron micrograph of a cluster of E. coli bacteria, magnified 10,000 times. Each individual bacterium is oblong shaped. Credit: United States Department of Agriculture
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On the Net:
The study was published in The Lancet Infectious Diseases. A summary of the report can be viewed at http://www.thelancet.com/journals/laninf/article/PIIS1473309908700410/abstract.
University of Calgary
Source: redOrbit Staff and Wire Reports
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