Thumbs down: Superbug finally arrives — in Nevada
For years, health officials have been warning about the future threat of drug-resistant bacterial “superbugs.” Now, it appears, the future has arrived. The Centers for Disease Control and Prevention reported on Friday that a Nevada woman died in September after being infected with a drug-resistant bacteria that she apparently picked up while being treated for a broken leg and bone infection in India years earlier. Doctors say the bacteria, while very rare, was resistant to all 26 forms of antibiotics approved by the U.S. Food and Drug Administration.
“This is not some future, fantasized Armageddon threat that maybe will happen after our lifetime,” Dr. James Johnson, a professor of infectious diseases at the University of Minnesota, told CBS News. “This is now, it’s real, and it’s here.” It’s still very rare, but it’s a major public health concern.
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