In the past few months, several consumers in Washington were sickened after eating at Chipotle restaurants. Before the Mexican grill outbreak, however, other dozens of Washingtonians were exposed to Salmonella due to contaminated pork consumption. The company behind the pork product operates in the state. But long before these two outbreaks, however, another type of organism (often called ‘superbug’) had been exposing different type of consumers to serious and, at times, deadly risks.
The bacteria known as CRE is one of the most common and dangerous superbugs the country has seen in the past years. And now, experts are dubbing the organism the “phantom menace.”
According to a series of experts in the field, the CRE superbug is difficult to treat because the organism has become highly resistant to most antibiotics.
As farms and doctors overuse antibiotics for a variety of reasons, bacteria becomes more resistant. And as a greater number of patients who were exposed to CRE while under care of local hospitals in Seattle and Los Angeles, CA and their loved ones file lawsuits against scope manufacturers, many experts believe that the medical community should be doing more to tackle this issue.
According to research carried out by the Centers for Disease Control and Prevention, CRE is one of the country’s most urgent public health threats. As different strains of CRE become more potent, health officials and the medical community should be pressured to do all they can to avoid serious outbreaks in the future, especially because CRE kills up to 50 percent of patients who become infected.
As scientists look into the new strain of CRE that may not be as resistant to antibiotics as the former strains, they begin to call CRE the “phantom menace.”
While being paranoid is not the answer, make sure you’re always alert to health and patient safety news before scheduling a hospital stay.
Too often, patients are exposed to deadly organisms such as the CRE superbug while staying in hospitals for minor or routine procedures. In many of these cases, the infections lead to fatalities.
If you’re interested in learning more about CRE superbug and its new strain, follow this link. If you’re concerned about the rise of superbugs and food poisoning incidents, stay alert and on top of the news, avoid undercooking meat products and cross-contamination by washing kitchen utensils when preparing meals, and seek medical attention if you feel sick after eating at a restaurant. In many cases, negligent behavior is to blame for these incidents. Those who are negligent should pay the price for these incidents, not innocent victims.
