MERS-CoV Update: new outbreak in Saudi Arabia
New cases Middle East Respiratory Syndrome coronavirus (MERS-CoV) have been reported in Saudi Arabia. Four more deaths were announced, bringing the number of deaths in the past week to 17. The World Health Organization (WHO) says many of the recent cases are associated with an outbreak at a hospital in Riyadh. Several other countries have also reported MERS-CoV cases in individuals who have travelled to the Middle East, including France, Italy,...
CDC article on Coordinated Approach to Reduce AROs in Healthcare Facilities
The U.S. Centers for Disease Control and Prevention have published an article on the Estimated Effects of a Coordinated Approach for Action to Reduce Antibiotic-Resistant Infections in Health Care Facilities. The findings estimate that with effective nationwide action now, more than half a million antibiotic-resistant health care–associated infections could be prevented over 5 years. Read the full article here: Centers for Disease Control and Prevention Morbidity and Mortality Weekly Report, August 4, 2015 ...
Breakthrough announced in MRSA testing
Micro Imaging Technology, Inc.announced that, through its collaboration with Northern Michigan University (NMU), it has developed a testing protocol that allows for detection of pathogen species from liquid cultures. Dr. Josh S. Sharp, Ph.D., assistant professor at the NMU Department of Biology in Marquette, Michigan, is researching clinical applications of the MIT 1000 System, particularly the pathogens Staphylococcus aureus (S. aureus) and Methicillin Resistant S. aureus (MRSA). According to MIT, it...
Ebola: Infection prevention and control recovery plans in Guinea, Liberia, and Sierra Leone
An inter-country meeting is taking place July 20-22 in Liberia on the topic of Ebola: Infection prevention and control recovery plans and implementation. Monrovia is hosting a meeting of infection prevention and control (IPC) experts from the 3 Ebola-affected countries. The overall aim of the meeting is to share experiences on IPC practices, and water and sanitation hygiene, as well as to plan the recovery and implementation. Meetings such as this can ensure...
Fecal transplant research for ulcerative colitis
Researchers are questioning whether the stool transplants could work for bowel diseases other than C. difficile, such as ulcerative colitis. However, the first trials looking at whether ulcerative colitis could be treated with an infusion of a healthy person's stool produced confusing results...
Opinion article: Lyme disease is real but no epidemic
From the Montreal Gazette: "Acute Lyme disease, of course, is very real. It is an infection caused by the bacteria Borrelia burgdorferi and gets spread to humans via bites from ticks of the Ixodes species. Adult ticks prefer to feed on white-tailed deer, but if an unassuming human happens by, they will happily latch on to the skin and feed on their host’s blood. The tick passes the bacteria to the...
McMaster researchers develop new infection test
Researchers from Hamilton's McMaster University have created a new test that can identify diseases like hepatitis C and C. difficile much earlier than ever before. Dr. Yingfu Li, a biochemistry and biomedical sciences professor, said the test allows doctors to get results in a matter of hours as opposed to days. It can also detect infections in lower concentrations that would otherwise be missed in regular tests. Read the full article on CBC news....