Via Mail Online :
" A flesh-eating form of pneumonia that is easily passed between healthy people on public transport is spreading across the UK, experts have warned.
The deadly strain of MRSA called USA300 passes easily through skin-to-skin contact. It can also survive on surfaces and so has the potential to be picked up on crowded buses and tubes.
It was first seen in the U.S but cases are now being reported in the community and not just hospitals in Britain.
Dr Ruth Massey, from the Department of Biology and Biochemistry at the University of Bath, said extra vigilance was required around this and similar MRSA bugs known as PVL-positive community acquired strains.
USA300 is resistant to treatment by several front-line antibiotics and can cause large boils on the skin. In severe cases, USA300 can lead to fatal blood poisoning or a form of pneumonia that can eat away at lung tissue.
Dr Massey said there were 1,000 cases of PVL-positive community acquired MRSA in England in the last year, of which 200 were USA300 strains.
Showing posts with label Mail Online. Show all posts
Showing posts with label Mail Online. Show all posts
Saturday, February 4, 2012
Thursday, November 3, 2011
Fears of new deadly super-flu which 'could spread to Britain within 24 hours'
Via Mail Online, a headline which screams panic :
" A new deadly strain of super-flu could spread to Britain within 24 hours, experts have warned.
The potential for bird flu and human flu to combine and form a new virus has been described as 'one of the biggest biological threats of our time'.
The alert comes as people have started to fall victim to seasonal flu and the more virulent swine flu at the same time, according to the Daily Express.
This creates the risk of a lethal mutation, leading to an 'ominous' super-flu virus to which humans have almost no immunity, said scientists.
Dr Peter Hotez, a world-renowned infectious disease expert, said: 'Highly infectious strains of the virus against which humans have little defence can spread from one continent to another within 24 hours.'
He said the detection of the rare double-flu infection highlighted the need for extreme vigilance against new killer strains around the world.
'We are required to remain vigilant against one of the biggest biological threats of our time,' added Dr Hotez, president of the American Society of Tropical Medicine and Hygiene.
The news comes as Britain’s winter flu season gets underway, amid fears the country could face one of the worst outbreaks of the disease in years."
" A new deadly strain of super-flu could spread to Britain within 24 hours, experts have warned.
The potential for bird flu and human flu to combine and form a new virus has been described as 'one of the biggest biological threats of our time'.
The alert comes as people have started to fall victim to seasonal flu and the more virulent swine flu at the same time, according to the Daily Express.
This creates the risk of a lethal mutation, leading to an 'ominous' super-flu virus to which humans have almost no immunity, said scientists.
Dr Peter Hotez, a world-renowned infectious disease expert, said: 'Highly infectious strains of the virus against which humans have little defence can spread from one continent to another within 24 hours.'
He said the detection of the rare double-flu infection highlighted the need for extreme vigilance against new killer strains around the world.
'We are required to remain vigilant against one of the biggest biological threats of our time,' added Dr Hotez, president of the American Society of Tropical Medicine and Hygiene.
The news comes as Britain’s winter flu season gets underway, amid fears the country could face one of the worst outbreaks of the disease in years."
Friday, May 27, 2011
Britain : Major food alert as three people in Britain diagnosed with E.coli strain that has killed five in Germany
Via Mail Online, now Britain is reporting cases of E Coli :
" Spanish cucumbers are suspected source of deadly E.coli strain
Three people have been diagnosed in Britain with the killer E.coli strain that has already claimed five lives in Germany and put 300 people in hospital.
At least another 500 people are suspected of being infected and hospitals in Germany are braced for a wave of new admissions.
Many of the victims - most of them women - are in intensive care and fighting for their lives after eating suspected 'killer cucumbers' from Spain that are now thought to be the cause of the infections.
But other salad items such as tomatoes and lettuce may also be the source of the bug.
The UK victims are Germans who travelled from their homeland and fell ill after entering Britain. However, the infection could potentially be passed person-to-person through hand-to-mouth contact.
It is understood the suspect salad items have not been sold in the UK but the UK Health Protection Agency said checks are ongoing.
Today the HPA said the outbreak is mainly affecting adults - almost 70 per cent of whom are women."
" Spanish cucumbers are suspected source of deadly E.coli strain
Three people have been diagnosed in Britain with the killer E.coli strain that has already claimed five lives in Germany and put 300 people in hospital.
At least another 500 people are suspected of being infected and hospitals in Germany are braced for a wave of new admissions.
Many of the victims - most of them women - are in intensive care and fighting for their lives after eating suspected 'killer cucumbers' from Spain that are now thought to be the cause of the infections.
But other salad items such as tomatoes and lettuce may also be the source of the bug.
The UK victims are Germans who travelled from their homeland and fell ill after entering Britain. However, the infection could potentially be passed person-to-person through hand-to-mouth contact.
It is understood the suspect salad items have not been sold in the UK but the UK Health Protection Agency said checks are ongoing.
Today the HPA said the outbreak is mainly affecting adults - almost 70 per cent of whom are women."
Wednesday, May 25, 2011
UK : Latest flu outbreak deadlier than 2009 pandemic as under 65s are hardest hit by swine strain
Via Mail Online, excerpt :
" Most of the Britons killed by the winter flu epidemic that swept the country were young or middle-aged due, according to official figures.
Altogether 602 people died from influenza during the winter of 2010, which was higher than the total during the 2009 global pandemic when 474 died.
More than 70 per cent (415) of those were aged between 15 and 64, despite the common belief that frail, old people are more at risk.
This was because the swine flu strain, which affected more younger people, claimed the most victims with 562 deaths linked to H1N1 last year.
Also just half of those at risk in this age group had been immunised against flu, according to the Health Protection Agency's annual flu report."
" Most of the Britons killed by the winter flu epidemic that swept the country were young or middle-aged due, according to official figures.
Altogether 602 people died from influenza during the winter of 2010, which was higher than the total during the 2009 global pandemic when 474 died.
More than 70 per cent (415) of those were aged between 15 and 64, despite the common belief that frail, old people are more at risk.
This was because the swine flu strain, which affected more younger people, claimed the most victims with 562 deaths linked to H1N1 last year.
Also just half of those at risk in this age group had been immunised against flu, according to the Health Protection Agency's annual flu report."
Tuesday, February 1, 2011
UK : Super-fit dance teacher, 21, is killed by swine flu in just five days
Via Mail Online :
" Lithe, lean and strong from working eight hours a day as a dance teacher, Katie Roach was the picture of health.
But when the 21-year-old was struck down with swine flu, her fitness counted for nothing.
Soon she was desperately fighting for breath and within five days of being taken ill she died in hospital after suffering massive damage to her lungs.
Her devastated parents, James and Sharon, urged anyone with symptoms of the virus to seek medical attention as quickly as possible."
" Lithe, lean and strong from working eight hours a day as a dance teacher, Katie Roach was the picture of health.
But when the 21-year-old was struck down with swine flu, her fitness counted for nothing.
Soon she was desperately fighting for breath and within five days of being taken ill she died in hospital after suffering massive damage to her lungs.
Her devastated parents, James and Sharon, urged anyone with symptoms of the virus to seek medical attention as quickly as possible."
Monday, January 31, 2011
UK : Disabled teenager died of swine flu after being refused GP appointment
Via Mail Online :
" A disabled teenager who was refused a GP appointment died two weeks later after contracting swine flu and pneumonia.
Katie Waring's devastated parents, Ken and Eveline, claim she could not get a vital appointment, and say they were told to 'wrap her up warm and give her fluids'.
Less than two weeks later, the 19-year-old, who suffered from the rare brain condition Craniostenosis, died in Hartlepool General Hospital, after being diagnosed with pneumonia and swine flu."
" A disabled teenager who was refused a GP appointment died two weeks later after contracting swine flu and pneumonia.
Katie Waring's devastated parents, Ken and Eveline, claim she could not get a vital appointment, and say they were told to 'wrap her up warm and give her fluids'.
Less than two weeks later, the 19-year-old, who suffered from the rare brain condition Craniostenosis, died in Hartlepool General Hospital, after being diagnosed with pneumonia and swine flu."
Thursday, August 5, 2010
UK : New breed of antibiotic that can beat MRSA
Via Mail Online :
" A family of ‘super-antibiotics’ capable of beating MRSA and other deadly infections has been created by scientists.
In tests, one of the drugs killed strains of the hospital superbug resistant to antibiotics already in use.
Others were more than a match for other potentially lethal germs, including food poisoning bug E coli, and acinetobacter, a soil-dwelling bug that is even harder to treat than MRSA.
The drugs, details of which emerged last night in the prestigious journal Nature, have been hailed as ‘an important step forward’.
Bacteria resistant to multiple drugs claim around 25,000 lives a year across the EU.
New treatments could save the taxpayer millions, as well as save lives.
Many superbugs are resistant to all but one or two antibiotics, and with resistance growing all the time, some scientists predict a ‘medical apocalypse’ in which hospital bugs will be completely untreatable."
" A family of ‘super-antibiotics’ capable of beating MRSA and other deadly infections has been created by scientists.
In tests, one of the drugs killed strains of the hospital superbug resistant to antibiotics already in use.
Others were more than a match for other potentially lethal germs, including food poisoning bug E coli, and acinetobacter, a soil-dwelling bug that is even harder to treat than MRSA.
The drugs, details of which emerged last night in the prestigious journal Nature, have been hailed as ‘an important step forward’.
Bacteria resistant to multiple drugs claim around 25,000 lives a year across the EU.
New treatments could save the taxpayer millions, as well as save lives.
Many superbugs are resistant to all but one or two antibiotics, and with resistance growing all the time, some scientists predict a ‘medical apocalypse’ in which hospital bugs will be completely untreatable."
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