Tornado Alley (PROG)

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A Mysterious Infection, Spanning the Globe in a Climate of Secrecy

""Media Giant Sinclair, Under Fire for Forcing Anchors to Read Trumpian Screed, Is Rapidly Expanding" "
[...]
[Specifically to] - Woman died from superbug resistant to all available antibiotics in U.S.
https://www.cbsnews.com/news/woman-dies-from-superbug-resistant-to-all-available-antibiotic-in-u-s/ ..
in "stashed April 3, 2018:"

The rise of Candida auris embodies a serious and growing public health threat: drug-resistant germs.

VIDEO - Revenge of the Bacteria: Why We’re Losing the War
.. embedded inside ..
Bacteria are rebelling. They’re turning the tide against antibiotics by outsmarting our wonder
drugs. This video explores the surprising reasons. Melissa Golden for The New York Times

By Matt Richtel and Andrew Jacobs

April 6, 2019

Last May, an elderly man was admitted to the Brooklyn branch of Mount Sinai Hospital for abdominal surgery. A blood test revealed that he was infected with a newly discovered germ as deadly as it was mysterious. Doctors swiftly isolated him in the intensive care unit.

[...]

For decades, public health experts have warned that the overuse of antibiotics was reducing the effectiveness of drugs that have lengthened life spans by curing bacterial infections once commonly fatal. But lately, there has been an explosion of resistant fungi as well, adding a new and frightening dimension to a phenomenon that is undermining a pillar of modern medicine.

“It’s an enormous problem,” said Matthew Fisher, a professor of fungal epidemiology at Imperial College London, who was a co-author of a recent scientific review .. http://science.sciencemag.org/content/360/6390/739 .. on the rise of resistant fungi. “We depend on being able to treat those patients with antifungals.”

[...]

Scientists say that unless more effective new medicines are developed and unnecessary use of antimicrobial drugs is sharply curbed, risk will spread to healthier populations. A study the British government funded projects .. https://amr-review.org/ .. that if policies are not put in place to slow the rise of drug resistance, 10 million people could die worldwide of all such infections in 2050, eclipsing the eight million expected to die that year from cancer.

https://www.nytimes.com/2019/04/06/health/drug-resistant-candida-auris.html

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"Unbeatable" superbug fungus sickens hundreds across the U.S., CDC says

Updated on: April 8, 2019 / 4:26 PM / CBS News

VIDEO

A drug-resistant superbug fungus has sickened nearly 600 people across the United States in recent years, including more than 300 patients in New York State, the Centers for Disease Control and Prevention reported. Candida auris, which preys on people with weakened immune systems, can be deadly.

CBS New York reports an elderly man died from the fungus last year at Mount Sinai Hospital following abdominal surgery.

"Most C. auris cases in the United States have been detected in the New York City area, New Jersey, and the Chicago area," the CDC said in a statement.

The fungus was seen in the U.S. for the first time in 2013. Dr. Lynn Sosa, Connecticut's deputy state epidemiologist, told The New York Times that she views she views Candida auris as "pretty much unbeatable and difficult to identify."

As of the end of February, a total of 587 cases had been confirmed across the country, most of them in New York State, where there were 309 cases. Illinois had 144 confirmed cases and New Jersey had 104.

Symptoms of Candida auris

According to the CDC, symptoms of the fungus may be difficult to detect because patients are often already sick and only a lab test can identify the superbug. Candida auris can cause different types of infections, including bloodstream infection, wound infection, and ear infection.

People who recently had surgery, live in nursing homes, or who have breathing tubes, feeding tubes or central venous catheters appear to be at highest risk.

"Based on information from a limited number of patients, 30–60% of people with C. auris infections have died. However, many of these people had other serious illnesses that also increased their risk of death," the CDC said.

Treating Candida auris

While most Candida auris infections are treatable with antifungal medications, the CDC says it's concerned that some have proven to be resistant to all three main classes of antifungal medications. "In this situation, multiple antifungal medications at high doses may be needed to treat the infection," the CDC said.

The CDC has more information available on its website.

https://www.cbsnews.com/news/candida-auris-outbreak-superbug-fungus-has-sickened-hundreds-cdc-says/

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Australian state reports its first case of superbug fungus

By ROD McGUIRK August 7, 2018

CANBERRA, Australia (AP) — An Australian state on Tuesday reported its first case of a superbug in a hospital patient who likely picked up the drug-resistant fungus in Britain.

Victoria Deputy Chief Health Officer Brett Sutton said health officials were taking a “search and destroy” approach to ensure the Candida auris fungus did not spread.

https://www.apnews.com/69b56bbe1bca448992bf41bf77c223a0