Disease
Antibiotic-resistant Bacteria Now Causing More Pneumonia
By
May 20, 2009 - 12:43:45 PM

(HealthNewsDigest.com) - A notorious antibiotic-resistant strain of bacteria now appears to be an emerging threat because of its ability to cause a potentially deadly form of pneumonia, doctors at Emory University School of Medicine report.

Methicillin-resistant Staphylococcous aureus (CA-MRSA) has become well known for causing community-acquired skin and soft-tissue infections. Community-acquired means the bacteria are transmitted outside the hospital, by person-to-person contact or contact with contaminated objects.

Now there have been increasing numbers of reports of pneumonia that kills lung tissue caused by CA-MRSA, according to the report from the Emory University team led by Alicia Hidron, MD, an infectious diseases fellow and Henry Blumberg, MD, professor of medicine and epidemiology at Emory.

The team’s article in the June issue of The Lancet Infectious Diseases analyzes two related cases of pneumonia caused by USA300, the most common genotype of CA-MRSA found to be causing infections in the United States, and reviews the literature of CA-MRSA pneumonia cases.

CA-MRSA pneumonia appears to most commonly affect young and previously healthy patients. Most reported cases of community-acquired pneumonia caused by Staphylococcus aureus seem to occur after an influenza-like illness, Blumberg says.

In addition to causing high fever and pneumonia, cases of CA-MRSA pneumonia can also sometimes cause low blood pressure progressing to septic shock and requiring mechanical assistance with breathing.

Given the apparent connection with influenza, the authors say that cases of CA-MRSA pneumonia could possibly become more frequent if the H1N1 influenza outbreak intensifies during the flu season this fall and winter.

Reference:
A.I. Hidron, C.E. Low, E.G. Honig, and H.M. Blumberg
Emergence of community-acquired meticillin-resistant Staphylococcus aureus strain USA300 as a cause of necrotizing community-onset pneumonia.
The Lancet Infectious Diseases, 9, page #’s (2009)

Subscribe to our FREE Ezine and be eligible for Health News, discounted products/services and coupons related to your Health. We publish 24/7.
HealthNewsDigest.com

© Copyright by HealthNewsDigest.com