Acinetobacter Superbug Kills 39 Patients in UK Hospital

St. Mary's Hospital in Paddington, UK has had a number of patients die from antibiotic-resistant acinetobacter infections since October 2004, reports This is London.

While a common bacteria, acinetobacter can turn deadly when it activates in the very ill.

Dr Mark Enright, an expert on hospital infections at Bath University, said the bug tended to hit those whose immune systems have been weakened - particularly on cancer, renal or intensive care wards.

(Looks like St. Mary's should install some of the air ionizers that worked so well against acinetobacter in 2003.)

Earlier this month, the UK Health Protection Agency published draft guidelines on combatting hospital-acquired acinetobacter infections, linked from their website's info page on the bacteria. They also link to this Johns Hopkins acinetobacter info page.