The Pharmaceutical Journal
Vol 269 No 7229 p878
21/28 December 2002

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Public Health Laboratory Service: article (more)
BMJ (bmj.com)

MRSA deaths increasing

Deaths due to methicillin resistant Staphylococcus aureus (MRSA) are increasing, according to the Public Health Laboratory Service.

The percentage of death certificates mentioning MRSA has increased threefold in a five-year period, from 7.5 per cent in 1993 to 25 per cent in 1998. The rise is unlikely to be due to improved reporting and further improvements in surveillance and control of health care associated infection should be a priority, the PHLS says.