11 August 2003: "Antibiotic-resistant 'superbugs' are spreading into the community, experts have warned. Doctors are now seeing urinary tract infections which cannot be treated with the standard medications because they are caused by drug-resistant strains of the E-coli bacteria."
9 August 2004: "There simply aren't enough new drugs in the pharmaceutical pipeline to keep pace with the evolution of drug-resistant bacteria, the so-called 'superbugs'. "
16 August 2005: "Significant numbers of chickens on sale in UK shops are contaminated with superbugs, a scientific survey commissioned by BBC One's Real Story suggests. Of the British-grown chickens analysed, over half were contaminated with multi-drug resistant E.coli which is immune to the effects of three or more antibiotics."
31 August 2006: "It may already be too late to bring the rapidly spreading drug-resistant staph bug known as MRSA under control."
15 August 2007: "A tough strain of skin infection that's called the “Super Bug” has become the most common form of skin infection among adult patients in hospitals nationwide, health officials say, but it can prey on people big and small."
11 August 2008: "Heavy use of antibiotics on factory farms is creating a range of superbugs, causing illness on a massive scale and numerous fatalities, a new study claims."
8 August 2009: "A new superbug that is resistant to all antibiotics has been brought into Britain by patients having surgery abroad, Government scientists said."
10 August 2010: "SUPERBUGS resistant to ALL antibiotics have been identified in Britain, it has emerged. Doctors believe they have been carried by people travelling from India. .. The bugs are part of Enterobacteriaceae - a family that includes feared E.coli, C.diff and salmonella. The new strains carry a gene called NDM1 which makes them virtually indestructible."
Put On Your Big Boy Pants, Maybe?
3 hours ago
10 comments:
Well it was a long time ago, but when I was at school I purchased an "indestructible" clear plastic ruler - damn thing shattered into hundreds of pieces during the first ruler fight I used it in.
Still, if we are all going to go toes up imminently on account of this indestructible super-bug why are we bothering any more about global warming, unemployment, the cuts, banking ... you name it, surely we can now ignore it - we should just all spend what time we have left having the biggest party the world has ever seen ...
Well, I've been killed so many times that another will make little difference.
It was AIDS through ignorance that got me back in the 80's. Then mad cow disease finished me off again, along with 100s of 1000s of others. To say nothing of being seen off, along with all the other hundreds of millions, by SARS and bird flu and swine flu. I've probably missed a couple, but when you're several times dead your memory isn't so good. And smoking, drinking, and consuming salt has also made me a regular client at the crematorium.
Let's match NDM1 over 12 rounds against Keef Richards and see how it shapes up.
And I, for one, welcome our new superbug overlords.
Anon, you should have bought 'shatterproof'.
VFTS, didn't you die of Mrs A or c diff when you were last in hospital or of a heart attack last time the temperature dropped by one degree? I suspect that like me, you're not very good at this whole 'meeting statistical expectations' malarkey.
AC, would you prefer to take your chances with giant hairy spiders?
Is it not deeply troubling that these new immigrant germ visitors to our shores are being thought of as enemies to be killed.
Can we not live in harmony with them as with other immigrant germs of yore.
I think we will live to fight another superbug. After all most people are now well aware of the dangers of superbugs in hospitals (that's why they try their hardest not to go to them). Most people are also well aware that washing your hands when entering or leaving said hospital is a must, unless of course the visitor fancies being admitted for E-Coli etc 3 days after visiting great aunty Edna.. All we need to do now is convince the workers, cleaners and managers of said hospitals that
'Coughs and sneezes spread diseases, but shit kills'.
The first major medical break through in the containment and treatment of bacteria and disease was the simple washing of hands between patients, this halted the spread of disease from patient to patient. This was followed by discoveries such as cholera being spread by shit in the water supply.
The solution to this problem is not rocket science, nor is it superdrugs, it's personal and public cleanliness.
M, nobody makes any money out of personal and public cleanliness. The pharmaceutical equivalent of rocket science is far more profitable.
That depends on one of 2 things:
1) Society advances in equality of association
2) Or it does not
If the latter we will not. Quite simple as seen in the link below. But we've done all the reading we need to do haven't we?
The Cause of Human Progress
Anon, we seemed to have survived all the previous Augusts but this time it's The Big One :-)
MLL, excellent points, I refer you to the subsequent comment by B.
RS, you've lost me this time.
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