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http://www.bbc.co.uk/news/health-10925411

A new superbug that is resistant to even the most powerful antibiotics has entered UK hospitals, experts warn.

They say bacteria that make an enzyme called NDM-1 have travelled back with NHS patients who went abroad to countries like India and Pakistan for treatments such as cosmetic surgery.

Although there have only been about 50 cases identified in the UK so far, scientists fear it will go global.

Tight surveillance and new drugs are needed says Lancet Infectious Diseases.

NDM-1 can exist inside different bacteria, like E.coli, and it makes them resistant to one of the most powerful groups of antibiotics - carbapenems.

These are generally reserved for use in emergencies and to combat hard-to-treat infections caused by other multi-resistant bacteria.

And experts fear NDM-1 could now jump to other strains of bacteria that are already resistant to many other antibiotics.

Ultimately, this could produce dangerous infections that would spread rapidly from person to person and be almost impossible to treat.

At least one of the NDM-1 infections the researchers analysed was resistant to all known antibiotics.

Similar infections have been seen in the US, Canada, Australia and the Netherlands and international researchers say that NDM-1 could become a major global health problem.

Infections have already been passed from patient to patient in UK hospitals.
Map showing infection hotspots in the UK and India

The way to stop NDM-1, say researchers, is to rapidly identify and isolate any hospital patients who are infected.

Normal infection control measures, such as disinfecting hospital equipment and doctors and nurses washing their hands with antibacterial soap, can stop the spread.

And currently, most of the bacteria carrying NDM-1 have been treatable using a combination of different antibiotics.


The Indian health ministry and the medical fraternity are yet to see the Lancet report but doctors in India say they are not surprised by the discovery of the new superbug.

"There is little drug control in India and an irrational use of antibiotics," Delhi-based Dr Arti Vashisth told the BBC.

Doctors say common antibiotics have become ineffective in India partly because people can buy them over the counter and indulge in self-medication. They also take small doses and discontinue treatment.

Gastroenterologist Vishnu Chandra Agarwal says in the past year he has come across many patients with E.coli infections who have not responded to regular antibiotics.

"In about a dozen cases, I have used a chemical - furadantin - to treat my patients. And it has worked. It makes them horribly nauseous, but it works," he says.

But the potential of NDM-1 to become endemic worldwide is "clear and frightening", say the researchers in The Lancet infectious diseases paper.

The research was carried out by experts at Cardiff University, the Health Protection Agency and international colleagues.

Dr David Livermore, one of the researchers and who works for the UK's Health Protection Agency (HPA), said: "There have been a number of small clusters within the UK, but far and away the greater number of cases appear to be associated with travel and hospital treatment in the Indian subcontinent.

"This type of resistance has become quite widespread there.

"The fear would be that it gets into a strain of bacteria that is very good at being transmitted between patients."

He said the threat was a serious global public health problem as there are few suitable new antibiotics in development and none that are effective against NDM-1.

The Department of Health has already put out an alert on the issue, he said.

"We issue these alerts very sparingly when we see new and disturbing resistance."
Travel history

The National Resistance Alert came in 2009 after the HPA noted an increasing number of cases - some fatal - emerging in the UK.

The Lancet study looked back at some of the NDM-1 cases referred to the HPA up to 2009 from hospitals scattered across the UK.

At least 17 of the 37 patients they studied had a history of travelling to India or Pakistan within the past year, and 14 of them had been admitted to a hospital in these countries - many for cosmetic surgery.

For some of the patients the infection was mild, while others were seriously ill, and some with blood poisoning.

A Department of Health spokeswoman said: "We are working with the HPA on this issue.

"Hospitals need to ensure they continue to provide good infection control to prevent any spread, consider whether patients have recently been treated abroad and send samples to HPA for testing.

"So far there has only been a small number of cases in UK hospital patients. The HPA is continuing to monitor the situation and we are investigating ways of encouraging the development of new antibiotics with our European colleagues."

The Welsh Assembly Government said it would be "fully considering" the report.

"The NHS in Wales is used to dealing with multi-resistant bacteria using standard microbiological approaches, and would deal with any new bacteria in a similar way," said a spokesperson.

Good night. Sweet dreams.

 

[Ignis Fatuus]

2012.

 

[Chinner]

its okay, bird flu already killed off half of the human species.

 

[GrotesqueBeauty]

 

[ClovingWestbrook]

its okay, bird flu already killed off half of the human species.

 

[ToxicAdam]

Someone better make a vaccine and convince the US govt to buy 300 million shots.

 

[Mael]

Another reason for you brits to keep clogging our hospitals I guess :lol

 

[xbhaskarx]

Apparently pumping all those antibiotics into humans and livestock over the last century wasn't the best idea.

Someone better make a vaccine and convince the US govt to buy 300 million shots.

Oops, I see everything has been covered already...

 

[DoomGyver]

wearegoingtodie.gif

 

[Vigilant Walrus]

Hawking was right! We need to get off the earth ASAP. Then we need to settle on many different planets so we can spread out, and make sure the human species will sustain itself... In theory the different planets might wage war, but there should be enough planets for all of us.

 

[Dilly]

Deja vu

 

[News Bot]

What else is fucking new.

We have a new super duper extinction disease every year without fail it seems. Media hyperbole, misrepresented statements from scientists and researchers blown out of proportion and general human panic and stupidity does not help.

 

[Kunan]

How did I know before I clicked this thread that its breeding in UK hospitals?

 

[Jzero]

sounds like swine flu

 

[SpectreFire]

2009 called. They want their headlines back.

 

[BocoDragon]

Quarantine the UK!

 

[Slayer-33]

wearegoingtodie.gif

:lol

 

[Drkirby]

What does it do though? Is it just like 'Mild Stomach Flu for a week', or Death?

 

[Walshicus]

Curse you Hitler and your army of Uberbugs!

 

[Escape Goat]

Army of the 12 Monkeys are behind it

 

[Veidt]

Army of the 12 Monkeys are behind it

oh fuck, not again.

when are these people gonna stop fucking chimps.

 

[TacticalFox88]

H1N1 all over again.

 

[Goron2000]

My grandad died of the last superbug MRSA, they don't get the same press coverage as swine/bird flu but they are a much bigger threat, especially to the elderly.

 

[Feep]

What else is fucking new.

We have a new super duper extinction disease every year without fail it seems. Media hyperbole, misrepresented statements from scientists and researchers blown out of proportion and general human panic and stupidity does not help.

.

 

[wenis]

What fashion accessories is going to be attached to this one? full face masks with breathing apparatusses?

 

[Pinko Marx]

Beaten.

 

[ElectricBlue187]

can never be too careful with these things, better sterilize the entire island from orbit

 

[CrocMother]

I enjoy the surgical beauty of nature self-correcting.

 

[radioheadrule83]

The Royal College of Physicians said the public shouldn't worry so I'm not going to

It is quite scary how the bacteria can spread its immunity on to other bacteria though... imagine something we would commonly treat with a course of antibiotics, actually becoming a new outbreak and killing people.

Its evolution at work, and its kind of amazing, but also a bit disconcerting. The sooner we can engineer nano-machines and bio-machines that can kill these kind of things the better.

I don't know why people do this medical tourism shit... I mean, if its something you *need* and you can only get it in India or wherever, fair enough -- but if its just cheaper, its not worth the risks.

 

[CurlySaysX]

swine flu 2.0

 

[Kurtofan]

Uncurable deadly disease always happens when I'm under immunodepressive medication,sweet.

 

[Truant]

swine flu 2.0

Surely you mean 2wine Flu.

 

[Harry_Tequila]

How did I know before I clicked this thread that its breeding in UK hospitals?

India and Pakistan actually.

 

[industrian]

Surely you mean 2wine Flu.

The good thing is that the next "pandemic" (lol) can be called Swin3 Flu. And after that Swine 4lu. Then 5wine Flu. Then we'll all be dead and won't have to worry about shoehorning a 6 in there.

 

[micster]

NDM-1 can exist inside different bacteria, like E.coli, and it makes them resistant to one of the most powerful groups of antibiotics - carbapenems.

L Change The WorLd has come real?

 

[DeSo]

Beaten.

God that's an incredible scene.

 

[Antagon]

Just when I'm reading this:

 

[NekoFever]

swine flu 2.0

Swine flu was SARS 3.0.

 

[Erico]

All you people who use antibacterial soap EVERY TIME you wash your hands, know that this is partly your fault.

 

[sinxtanx]

We're all gonna survive oh god why

 

[Mangoverboard]

Nature clearly wants us all dead when it keeps producing all these super bugs that will wipe us all out.It's only a matter of time before one actually works

 

[Shin Kojima]

Nature clearly wants us all dead when it keeps producing all these super bugs that will wipe us all out.It's only a matter of time before one actually works

Yeah. We should probably just surrender to this one before nature finds something REALLY nasty to fuck us up.

 

[FunkyPajamas]

Swine flu was SARS 3.0.

SARS DEFENSE FORCE ASSEMBLE!

 

[ILikeFeet]

We're all gonna survive oh god why

because God loves you

 

[BlueTsunami]

H1N1 let me down. I refuse to be hyped.

 

[SmokyDave]

It would be my local hospital affected by this

We seem to be having a few problems with bugs since outsourcing the cleaning services.

It's odd that the bacteria has been brought in from Pakistan and India and yet scientists fear it will go global. Kinda sounds like it already has.

 

[$1148 Jack]

To all the people saying swine flu.. This is bacteria, not a virus.
Very, very bad with our level of antibiotics atm.

 

[afternoon delight]

Edit: In all actuality, events like this make me pause and become scared.

 

[Tristam]

This can't be swine flu 2.0 because swine flu is viral; this is bacterial. We constantly accelerate the evolution of bacteria because we--in an understatement--overuse antibiotics.

 

[$1148 Jack]

It would be my local hospital affected by this

We seem to be having a few problems with bugs since outsourcing the cleaning services.

It's odd that the bacteria has been brought in from Pakistan and India and yet scientists fear it will go global. Kinda sounds like it already has.

Mainly from westerners going over for elective surgery...
Also antibiotics are able to be purchased over the counter without prescription in those countries. Add to the problem the fact that many patients there are not following the whole course, therefore providing the bacteria time to adapt and evolve.