May 11, 2012
A round-up of news on drug resistance and other topics in global health.
In a feature article, Bloomberg unpacks the rocket fuel that drives the emergence of highly drug resistant bacterial infections in India, including infections caused by bacteria containing the gene NDM-1. PRI s The World sits down for an interview with article author Jason Gale, and Bloomberg View looks at what we can do to mitigate emerging drug resistance, including better managing antibiotics and infection control, and replenishing the pipeline for new drugs.
A study in PLoS ONE describes how Listeria, a common bacterial cause of foodborne illness, exploits a cellular protein to grow. Understanding this mechanism could inspire new approaches to anti-infective development.
In Archives of Disease in Childhood Fetal & Neonatal, researchers examine seasonal patterns of HAIs in neonates in Canada, finding a spike in gram-negative infections during the summer months.
A study in Infection Control and Hospital Epidemiology directly links hospital readmissions with the presence of healthcare-associated infections.
At the Society for Healthcare Epidemiology of America (SHEA) Spring Meeting, Dr. Thomas Sandora highlights the differences between infection control practices in pediatric versus adult care.
May 5th was Hand Hygiene Day. Read the WHO press release on global efforts to encourage best practices in hand washing and other aspects of hospital infection prevention.
In the sediment of the Tijuana River Valley, a researcher finds genes that confer antibiotic resistance.
The Center for a Livable Future blog looks at a February 2012 U.S. Food and Drug Administration study on multi-drug resistance in farmed shrimp.
The Huffington Post sums up the recent research on antibiotic residues and resistance genes in the environment and their relationship with antibiotic resistant infections in humans.
In the UK, The Guardian reports that NHS will begin to use cameras to monitor staff behavior, including hand washing.
The former Surgeon General of the Pakistan Army pens an essay on the need for urgent action in Pakistan to address antimicrobial resistance.
Will the Prescription Drug User Fee Act make it through the U.S. Congress with incentives for antibiotic development intact? Politico reports on important differences between House and Senate drafts of the must-pass bill.
The Economist examines U.S. and EU efforts to create incentives for pharmaceutical companies to invest in antibiotic research.
A study in the Lancet finds that infectious diseases cause over 60% of under-5 deaths worldwide, with pneumonia as the top killer.
At MIT, researchers examine how nanoparticles could be used to target the delivery of high doses of antibiotics and improve the drugs’ effectiveness. Listen to an interview with lead researcher Aleks Radovic-Moreno on New Hampshire Public Radio.
CNN-IBN reports that the Indian Health Ministry will now require doctors to register all cases of tuberculosis, in response to increasing prevalence of drug-resistant strains of the disease.
In a blog post, American Medical Association President Peter W. Carmel discusses how the AMA contributes to combating antibiotic resistance through forming partnerships, creating quality measures, and calling for incentives for new drug development.
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Image credit: Flickr: Gates Foundation
