ATLANTA: More than a third of skilled nursing home residents were found to be carriers of antibiotic-resistant bacteria, or superbugs, in a study conducted by researchers.
Scientists swabbed more than 100 residents from four high-care facilities.
More than half of those residents carrying the bug had received antibiotics in the three months before being tested.
Antibiotics are being overused and the study showed it could lead to higher rates of superbugs.
One in five of the residents tested also had extended stays in hospital and the study showed this could put other patients at risk.
The study concluded there needed to be a “multi-pronged approach” to address the problem, focusing on preventing initial infection and also the use of antibiotics.
Hygiene practices in skilled nursing homes created a unique challenge when compared to hospitals.
“Infection control in a skilled nursing home is completely different. This is a living environment, there are shared facilities, there are group activities.
“It is much more challenging than in a hospital environment to prevent infection and transmission,” said the study…