100 deaths from superbug in 18 months in one Quebec hospital

Main Category: MRSA / Drug Resistance
Article Date: 05 Aug 2004 - 13:00 PDT

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In just one Quebec hospital, 100 people have died from superbugs in the last 18 months, says Dr Jacques Pepin, an infectious disease expert at the hospital. Dr Pepin is urging the government to take action to prevent further unnecessary deaths and infections.

Dr. Pepin says that the incidence of Clostridium difficile at University Hospital, Sherbooke, Canada, among vulnerable patients has been increasing at an alarming rate.

In fact, between 1991 and 2003 the number of cases has increased 10 times (1000%).

You can read about Dr Pepin's study in the Canadian Medical Association Journal. He says 54 patients died at the hospital last year - so far this year the death toll has already reached 46.

Pepin and his team looked at the records of patients with C. difficile since 1991. They compared the number of cases with the number of deaths.

In 1991 5% of patients died within one month of diagnosis, in 2001 the figure soared to 14%.

Even though many of the patients who died were elderly, Dr. Pepin believes the majority of deaths were due to the superbug.

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