Community Corner
Report: Seventh Death Attributed To 'Superbug' At NIH Clinical Center
An antibiotic-resistant superbug, which spread through the hospital last year, has killed a boy whose case was the first reported there since January.
A “superbug” infection killed a boy Sept. 7 at the NIH Clinical Center in Bethesda, the seventh victim of the bacterial strain, The Washington Post reports.
The victim, a seriously ill boy from Minnesota, died of a bloodstream infection, according to the report.
The boy’s case marks the first new infection at the clinical center since January, The Post reported.
Find out what's happening in Bethesda-Chevy Chasewith free, real-time updates from Patch.
An antibiotic-resistant strain of the bacterium Klebsiella pneumoniae was first detected in a patient at the clinical center in August 2011 and spread to 17 additional patients, 11 of whom died. Staff there attributed six of the deaths directly to the superbug, The Post reported.
Klebsiella infections can pose a threat to seriously ill, hospitalized patients with weakened immune systems, experts say, but not to healthy people outside hospitals.
Find out what's happening in Bethesda-Chevy Chasewith free, real-time updates from Patch.
Officials at nearby Suburban Hospital told The Post there have been no outbreaks of drug-resistant Klebsiella there.
Read the full story at The Washington Post.
Get more local news delivered straight to your inbox. Sign up for free Patch newsletters and alerts.
