Infection Control Today Magazine

Pathogens

Infection by pathogenic organisms and multidrug-resistant organisms are responsible for causing significant morbidity and mortality in the healthcare setting. Pathogens are transmitted via fomites and reservoirs, including the hands of healthcare workers, medical equipment and devices and other animate and inanimate objects that play a role in cross-contamination.

Norovirus is the Leading Cause of Outbreaks in U.S. Hospitals

Norovirus, a pathogen that often causes food poisoning and gastroenteritis, was responsible for 18.2 percent of all infection outbreaks and 65 percent of ward closures in U.S. hospitals during a two-year period, according to a new study published in the February 2012 issue ...More
2 weeks ago
Posted in News, Hand Hygiene
Legionella Found in Water at Las Vegas Resort

The Southern Nevada Health District has received reports that three guests who stayed at the Luxor Resort were diagnosed with Legionnaires’ disease. The health district was informed of these cases through the Centers for Disease Control and Prevention (CDC)'s national ...More
2 weeks ago
Posted in News
Lungs Infected with Plague Bacteria Also Become Playgrounds for Other Microbes

Among medical mysteries baffling many infectious disease experts is exactly how the deadly pneumonic plague bacterium, Yersinia pestis, goes undetected in the first few day of lung infection, often until it’s too late for medical treatment. New research from the University ...More
2 weeks ago
Posted in News
Study Offers New Information for the Fight Against Influenza

Ralph Tripp is the Georgia Research Alliance Eminent Scholar in Vaccine Development in the UGA College of Veterinary Medicine. The influenza virus can rapidly evolve from one form to another, complicating the effectiveness of vaccines and antiviral drugs used to treat it. ...More
2 weeks ago
Posted in News
Many High-Risk Americans Don't Get Hepatitis B Vaccine

A recently published study investigating hepatitis B vaccination rates in the United States found that more than half of adults at risk for hepatitis B virus remain unvaccinated. With many of these individuals making contact with the healthcare system, including HIV ...More
3 weeks ago
Posted in News
Combination of Oral Drugs Suppresses Common Type of Hepatitis C

A new combination of investigational drugs successfully suppressed hepatitis C genotype 1 infection in a high percent of patients who had not responded to previous treatment in a study led by a University of Michigan hepatologist. The study, which will be published Jan. 19, ...More
3 weeks ago
Posted in News
H5N1 Virus Targets Pulmonary Endothelial Cells

The H5N1 virus has killed roughly 60 percent of humans infected, a mortality rate which is orders of magnitude higher than that of seasonal influenza virus. Many victims of the former fall heir to acute respiratory distress syndrome—the inability to breathe. Now researchers ...More
3 weeks ago
Posted in News
Ulcer-Causing Bacteria are Baffled by Mucus

Even the tiniest microscopic organisms make waves when they swim. In fact, dealing with these waves is a fact of life for the ulcer-causing bacteria H. pylori. The bacteria are known to change their behavior in order to compensate for the waves created by other bacteria ...More
3 weeks ago
Posted in News
Researchers Identify Potential New Therapy Approach for Hepatitis C Infection

Researchers at the University of British Columbia have found a new way to block infection from the hepatitis C virus (HCV) in the liver that could lead to new therapies for those affected by this and other infectious diseases. More than 170 million people worldwide suffer ...More
4 weeks ago
Posted in News
NIH Scientists Identify Novel Approach to View Inner Workings of Viruses

In the background, cryo-electron micrographs of purified viruses with their inner structure bubbling from radiation damage. Overlaid, (left) 3D computer reconstruction of a virus's outer shell and tail in gray, with the inner structure in magenta; (right) blow-up of the ...More
4 weeks ago
Posted in News