{"id":255405,"date":"2025-09-26T05:37:15","date_gmt":"2025-09-26T05:37:15","guid":{"rendered":"https:\/\/www.europesays.com\/us\/255405\/"},"modified":"2025-09-26T05:37:15","modified_gmt":"2025-09-26T05:37:15","slug":"cdc-warns-of-dramatic-rise-in-dangerous-drug-resistant-bacteria-how-you-can-protect-yourself","status":"publish","type":"post","link":"https:\/\/www.europesays.com\/us\/255405\/","title":{"rendered":"CDC warns of dramatic rise in dangerous drug-resistant bacteria. How you can protect yourself"},"content":{"rendered":"\n

Infection rates are soaring in the United States due to a menacing bacteria that are resistant \u201cto some of the strongest antibiotics available,\u201d prompting infectious-disease experts to warn about the difficulty of responding to the surge.<\/p>\n

The Centers for Disease Control and Prevention warned in a report this week that between 2019 and 2023,<\/a> bacterial infections caused by a \u201csuper bug\u201d bacteria dubbed NDM-producing carbapenem-resistant Enterobacterales (NDM-CRE) surged by more than 460% in the U.S. <\/p>\n

The NDM-CRE is a type of bacteria with a special gene that can break down powerful antibiotics rendering most drug treatments ineffective, said Shruti Gohil, associate professor of infectious diseases at UC Irvine School of Medicine. <\/p>\n

\u201cThis makes these \u2018superbug\u2019 bacteria very hard to treat because they\u2019re resistant to some of the strongest antibiotics we have,\u201d Gohil said. <\/p>\n

The CDC\u2019s findings, originally published in a 2022 report, noted that there were approximately 12,700 infections and 1,100 deaths in the U.S. in 2020 due to this drug-resistant bacteria. <\/p>\n

The public health agency did not determine the exact reason for the surge; however, there is an association involving the use of antibiotics to treat COVID-19 patients in the beginning of the pandemic, said Neha Nanda, medical director of antimicrobial stewardship with USC\u2019s Keck Medicine.<\/p>\n

Public health officials warn that NDM-CRE has not historically been common in the U.S., so healthcare providers might not suspect it when treating patients with bacteria-related infections. <\/p>\n

The rise of the bacteria also \u201cthreatens to increase NDM-CRE-related infections and deaths,\u201d according to the CDC. <\/p>\n

This is the second report the CDC released that highlighted a rise in bacteria-related cases, the most recent was published in June and focused on cases in New York City between 2019 and 2024<\/a>. <\/p>\n

Available treatment for NDM-CRE?<\/p>\n

Experts say people with NDM-CRE bacteria won\u2019t have any symptoms unless they develop an infection. Once they develop an infection, the symptoms will vary. NDM-CRE can cause such ailments as pneumonia, bloodstream infections, urinary tract infections and wound infections.<\/p>\n

Some symptoms can include fever, chills with cough, shortness of breath if the bacteria infect the lung, and pain or blood when urinating if the bladder\/kidneys are infected.<\/p>\n

Since the bacteria are resistant to most antibiotics, treatment options are severely limited, leading to slower recovery and higher risk of serious complications or death, Gohil said.<\/p>\n

Another reason health officials are concerned is because the bacteria can spread to others and survive on contaminated surfaces. <\/p>\n

Doctors can test for NDM-CRE, but most people do not need to be tested unless they are at higher risk for having it, according to experts.<\/p>\n

Those at risk are people who have been \u201cin a hospital (especially in another country), had repeated antibiotics, hospital stays, or invasive medical procedures, or if you\u2019re sick and been in contact with someone known to have NDM-CRE,\u201d Gohil said. <\/p>\n

Testing for the bacteria is also difficult because many hospitals and clinics do not have the tools to rapidly detect it in patients even when the patient is not sick.<\/p>\n

How to protect yourself against NDM-CRE <\/p>\n

NDM-CRE is caused by overuse of powerful antibiotics.<\/p>\n

\u201cI think this may be an opportunity for us to change the narrative where all patients typically want antibiotics,\u201d Nanda said.<\/p>\n

Nanda advises patients who are being prescribed with antibiotics to ask their healthcare provider:<\/p>\n