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Antibiotic-resistant bacteria persists in hospital rooms
Respiratory Care Weekly, October 11, 2006
Where do the bacteria for vancomycin-resistant enterococci (VRE) hide after a patient with the infection leaves a room? Floors, beds, gowns, faucets, and other hospital room fixtures, according to a new study in the October 9 Archives of Internal Medicine. Researchers previously found that 29% of patients who acquire these pathogens develop infections or other complications within 18 months.
Researchers showed that patients staying in rooms where previous occupants had VRE or methicillin-resistant staphylococcus aureus (MRSA)-both of which can lead to difficult-to-treat illness because mainline antibiotics aren't effective against them-carry a higher risk of acquiring the bacteria. That risk is present, even when room-cleaning procedures exceed national guidelines. The excess risk associated with an infected prior occupant accounted for 5.1% of all new cases of MRSA and 6.8% of all new cases of VRE, according to the Archives.
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