Hospital Infection Control & Prevention – June 1, 2019
June 1, 2019
View Archives Issues
-
Measles Breaks Case Record, Hits 22 States and Big Apple
A record resurgence of measles in 2019 includes two large, ongoing outbreaks in New York, where the Centers for Disease Control and Prevention is helping hospitals and outpatient clinics prevent transmission from incoming cases. -
CDC Recommends Measles Shot for Travelers
Lowering the age of measles immunization for travelers due to international outbreaks, the Centers for Disease Control and Prevention “strongly recommends” that infants six months through 11 months receive one dose of measles, mumps, and rubella vaccine before travel. -
CDC Investigators Report Pseudomonas Superbug
An emerging strain of Pseudomonas aeruginosa with a novel mechanism of resistance to most antibiotics has been detected in healthcare outbreaks in Lubbock, TX, and Tijuana, Mexico, the Centers for Disease Control and Prevention reports.
-
Mutant Strep Shows Resistance to Beta-Lactams
Capable of causing invasive infections, Streptococcus pyogenes (Group A strep) has been susceptible to beta-lactam antibiotics for more than a half century. Ominously, researchers investigating an upsurge of Group A strep cases in Seattle found a mutated strain that confers resistance to ampicillin and other beta-lactam drugs.
-
Drug Diversion, Resulting Infections on Rise
Infection preventionists should be vigilant in detecting and preventing drug diversion by healthcare workers, as outbreaks linked to this crime appear to be increasing, says Kimberly New, JD, BSN, RN, founder of Diversion Specialists.
-
CDC Narrows In on Viral Cause of Paralytic Syndrome
Acute flaccid myelitis — a paralytic condition in children that appeared mysteriously in 2014 — is almost certainly of viral origin and most likely an enterovirus, an investigator with the Centers for Disease Control and Prevention recently reported.