Medical researchers are raising concerns about an emerging health threat caused by a new genetic mechanism that is not only antibiotic resistant, but also has the ability to mutate and be transported around the globe.
Three cases of the unique gene, the New Delhi metallo-beta-lactamase 1 (NDM-1), have been reported in the United States, all in patients who had surgery overseas.
In one case, a woman from the United States became ill with diarrhea during a Mediterranean cruise, was hospitalized in Greece and diagnosed with Clostridium difficile infection, and then transferred to a hospital in the US. Blood cultures found the antibiotic resistance NDM-1strain, but the patient recovered.
NDM-1 raises concerns about new health-care-associated antibiotic resistant infections such as ventilator-associated pneumonia and urinary tract infections.
The Centers for Disease Control and Prevention (CDC) urges facilities that have not yet identified cases to undertake periodic laboratory reviews.
Patients with the antibiotic resistant infections should be managed using contact precautions, and others exposed to them should be screened with surveillance cultures.
Find more about this at the CDC website.