Deadly super-bug cases rising
A lethal superbug plaguing England’s hospitals is spreading at a disconcertingly high rate, according to the Department of Health (DoH).
The DoH’s first official report on the occurrences of the bacteria – clostridium difficile associated disease (C. difficile) – records 44,488 cases among the over 65s in England last year.
Statistics show that while MRSA is the most well-known hospital super-bug, C. difficile is almost seven times more common among English hospitals.
Previously, cases of C. difficile have only been recorded by independent bodies such as the Public Health Laboratory Service (PHLS) – since replaced by the Health Protection Agency (HPA).
One such PHLS study in the early 1990s found only 1,000 cases of the bug.
Experts have said that the bacteria – found naturally in the intestine – is normally kept under control by other bacteria, however the overuse of antibiotics can kill off some of these “protective” bacteria, and allow C. difficile to flourish.
Elderly people are the most likely to be affected by C. difficile, and it is particularly difficult to eradicate from the ward environment, which means it can be easily contracted by other patients.
The bug, which causes severe diarrhoea, has killed 12 patients and has afflicted 300 patients in Stoke Mandeville Hospital alone, in the last two years.
Earlier this year, the Royal Devon and Exeter Hospital, Exeter also revealed that C. difficile caused 13 patient deaths.
