As predicted earlier this week: The Centers for Disease Control and Prevention (CDC) has announced more deaths of children from flu, and from flu followed by MRSA pneumonia.
My colleagues at the Center for Infectious Disease Research and Policy are tracking the case count, and here’s what they said this evening:
The CDC received eight reports of [...]
Cody Shrout, a 12-year-old 6th-grader who lived in Daytona Beach, Fla., was found dead in bed a week ago today by his 8-year-old sister.
His death was initially put down to chickenpox, which was circulating in his school, but the Volusia County medical examiner determined Tuesday that his death was due to MRSA.
Two weeks ago, he [...]
Via the (Tucson) Arizona Daily Star, I’ve just caught up with the very sad story of Robert Sweitzer, a Tucson resident who died on his 39th birthday, of MRSA pneumonia.
Sweitzer died last Feb.10, but his name is in the news now because a lawsuit filed by his wife Rachel against the hospital where he died [...]
I just want to note that there is a sad uptick in news of MRSA illnesses and deaths among teens:
18-year-old Alonzo Smith of Kissimmee, Fla. died this past Monday, Sept. 29.
17-year-old Saalen Jones of Philadelphia died on Tuesday, Sept. 23.
In addition, just in the past two weeks there have been school outbreaks in:
Williams, AZ
two Cleveland, [...]
Constant readers will know that, in another part of my life, I write a great deal about seasonal and pandemic influenza, a subject I’ve been following since writing the first story in the American media about avian influenza H5N1 (in August 1997; find it on this page.)
And people concerned about MRSA realize that flu and [...]
A new paper in the Annals of Internal Medicine suggests an astounding technique for figuring out whether patients experienced an adverse event while in the hospital:
Asking them.
No, really.
The study by Massachusetts researchers (from University of Massachusetts, Brown, Harvard, Massachusetts Department of Public Health and Massachusetts Hospital Association) looked back at the experience of more [...]
I blogged earlier on new research that alligator blood may contain potent antimicrobial compounds. Now the Miami Herald has done a nice long story that thoughtfully explores the possibilities and limitations of that research. (Hat tip to KSJ ScienceTracker for noting the story.)
And via the BBC, here is a report that British researchers believe some [...]
Steve Smith of the Boston Globe (who is really good, and I say that as someone who used to compete against him) has a story up regarding state and national concern over children’s deaths from MRSA pneumonia. There have been two such deaths in Massachusetts this year. These are the sort of deaths that make [...]
Came back from the conference and got slammed with work. (Also, snow, three days in succession. What is it about “Spring” that Minnesota does not understand?) So especial thanks to the 15 readers — you know who you are and Google Analytics does too — who have been diligently checking regardless.
I’m going to do [...]
Child deaths from flu + MRSA, an update
0 CommentsTerribly sad story from Florida
0 CommentsIt’s flu season: Watch for MRSA pneumonia.
0 CommentsMore teen MRSA deaths
0 CommentsThe importance of MRSA in a flu pandemic
0 CommentsOf course we would never have thought of that.
0 CommentsStudies: gator blood, sudden infant death syndrome
0 CommentsChild deaths from flu + MRSA
0 CommentsRandom MRSA research, ICEID
0 Comments© 2013 Maryn McKenna. All Rights Reserved.
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