A microbiology technical specialist at the Brant Community Healthcare System laboratory in Ontario, Canada, has discovered a possible new strain of vancomycin resistant enterococci-like bacterium, according to a news release.
VRE are bacteria that live amongst the normal bacteria residing in the human intestines and can cause serious infections that are resistant to standard antibiotics. Since the bacteria can easily spread by human contact, hospitals must be vigilant and implement strict infection control practices.
BCHS experts' initial findings indicate this VRE-like strain was in 15 percent of tested cases. Experts also discovered that, unlike normal VRE, the organism is killed by vancomycin, yet it grows on plates specially designed to detect VRE.
Hospital officials emphasize that much more scientific study will be required to determine the relevance of the finding and have approached expert scientists at Public Health Ontario, who are now researching the discovery.
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VRE are bacteria that live amongst the normal bacteria residing in the human intestines and can cause serious infections that are resistant to standard antibiotics. Since the bacteria can easily spread by human contact, hospitals must be vigilant and implement strict infection control practices.
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BCHS experts' initial findings indicate this VRE-like strain was in 15 percent of tested cases. Experts also discovered that, unlike normal VRE, the organism is killed by vancomycin, yet it grows on plates specially designed to detect VRE.
Hospital officials emphasize that much more scientific study will be required to determine the relevance of the finding and have approached expert scientists at Public Health Ontario, who are now researching the discovery.
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