Sporadic epidemics caused by Burkholderia cepacia (the bacterium formerly known as Pseudomonas cepacia) might be around the corner, especially in hospitals, Dr Anthony Webb (Bradbury cystic fibrosis unit, Wythenshawe hospital, Manchester) has warned.
He told participants at the annual meeting of the European Respiratory Society in Madrid that this organism was known to infect patients with cystic fibrosis but "severe infections with B cepacia have [also] been described in previously healthy individuals". Speakers at the meeting reported that the bacterium survived in solutions of disinfectant, such as mouthwashes, and in respiratory nebuliser solutions. This had already led to nosocomial infections in some intensive care units and in cardiology wards. The risk of an outbreak was not purely theoretical and, in Great Britain alone, a large number of all those infected by B cepacia were colonised by the most dangerous strain - ET-12 - also known as the UK epidemic strain. Since the different strains of B cepacia were highly resistant to antibiotics, the threat of epidemics had to be taken seriously.