Hundreds of cases of “nightmare bacteria” have been found in the U.S., the Centers for Disease Control and Prevention said Tuesday.
New nationwide testing data found 221 instances last year of unusual, antibiotic-resistant genes that previously had been uncommon in the U.S.
The CDC released a report Tuesday that looked at the prevalence of such “nightmare bacteria,” which can include superbugs that can’t be killed by all or most antibiotics. The agency said the report, which details new data gathered from state and local health departments, underscores the need for greater identification of the bacteria.
“Once [antibiotic resistance] spreads, it is harder to control,” the agency said. “Finding and responding to unusual resistance early, before it becomes common, can help stop its spread and protect people.”
Antibiotic resistance threatens to outpace the development of new antibiotics, the CDC noted.
The report gleaned data from local and state health departments working with the CDC’s lab network. In 2017, the agency created an effort to react rapidly to novel superbugs, which included encouraging health facilities to report an emerging pathogen to CDC.
From January to September 2017, participating localities reported 221 “nightmare” bacteria resistant to antibiotics.
CDC said that stopping them requires screening patients without symptoms who may carry and spread the germ, a coordinated response with other healthcare facilities, and continued screenings until the spread of antibiotic bacteria has stopped.
The CDC has ramped up its efforts to combat superbugs in recent years, hoping to get doctors to curb unnecessary antibiotic prescriptions.
