Superbugs

Antibiotic resistance, in which microbes no longer respond to drugs, is quickly becoming a global health emergency. Of particular concern are so-called “superbugs,” a handful of pathogens that patients acquire in hospitals and other health care settings. Patients recovering from surgery are particularly vulnerable to the resistant, hospital-borne infections, which put them at high risk of death.

Source: tatoeba (12251036)

Unhindered, the drug-resistant bacteria can find their way into the bloodstream or organs through wounds or the use of catheters. Once infected, patients, whose bodies are now overrun by superbugs, do not respond to antibiotics and can die of septic shock and organ failure.

Source: tatoeba (12251558)

Drug-resistant superbugs, which can live on flat surfaces, are the most serious worry. Often-lethal microbes like MRSA, or methicillin-resistant Staphylococcus aureus, do not respond to standard antibiotics, making it very hard to treat patients who become infected with them.

Source: tatoeba (12257484)

Fifteen to 20 percent of hospital rooms were cleaned using the UV robots. Anderson said the devices were used in rooms where it was suspected that superbugs lurked. These rooms included intensive care units and rooms where patients had been treated for drug-resistant bacterial infections.

Source: tatoeba (12257492)