Woman dies from bacteria resistant to all forms of antibiotic

PucaMama · 18-01-2017 04:19PM

It's not just the new "superbugs" that are a danger when it comes to antibiotic resistance. All bacteria can and will evolve resistance. When the time comes a simple cut on your hand could mean death from a bacteria that only a couple of years ago would have been treated easily.

dudara · 18-01-2017 04:26PM

pickarooney wrote: »

Is it not a good thing if more older people die of diseases? Not for them, obviously, but for the environment and the economy.

Once the old are gone, where will the bacteria go next?

I'm not old, but I have potential susceptibility to infections due the fact that I was born with a heart defect. I'm a pretty robust person with good natural defences (I grew up on a farm), and I've only ever needed antibiotics a handful of times in my life. But still... it will only take one infection of the wrong kind.

Don't overuse antibiotics
Finish any course that you start
Don't clean your house to within an inch of its life. A low level of dirt is actually not a bad thing, particularly for children. Exposure to pets and other children is also good, assuming no infectious diseases or allergies. Your immune system is largely formed when you're young.
Get vaccinated and stay healthy. When you are sick, you're susceptible to other cr*p, so don't give infections a chance to come in the door

But ultimately, the simple fact is that new antibiotics are desperately needed.

PucaMama · 18-01-2017 04:29PM

The world needs to be far more concerned with antibiotic resistance. Someone mentioned flu, a flu pandemic is inevitable but maybe we can win against the antibiotic resistance.

pilly · 18-01-2017 04:35PM

There's a little bit of hysteria about this whole thing if you ask me. Someone in there 70's could be killed by an type of infection or virus regardless of whether there is an antibiotic that fights it or not, simply because their body is weaker.

PucaMama · 18-01-2017 04:38PM

pilly wrote: »

There's a little bit of hysteria about this whole thing if you ask me. Someone in there 70's could be killed by an type of infection or virus regardless of whether there is an antibiotic that fights it or not, simply because their body is weaker.

The point is she's not the only person ever to die from a resistant infection. Look at multi drug resistant TB. People of all ages dieing from that.

pilly · 18-01-2017 04:41PM

PucaMama wrote: »

The point is she's not the only person ever to die from a resistant infection. Look at multi drug resistant TB. People of all ages dieing from that.

Well that's a fair enough point but it wasn't the one made in the opening article.

Robineen · 18-01-2017 04:41PM

Graces7 wrote: »

Up to each of us to stop using abs for so many lesser infections. And to drs to stop prescriibing so many.

Well, I have no problem with antibiotics being prescribed for any infection that isn't self-limiting, even lesser ones. The problem lies with use of antibiotics where they will be completely ineffective or where the infection will sort itself out.

PucaMama · 18-01-2017 04:42PM

pilly wrote: »

Well that's a fair enough point but it wasn't the one made in the opening article.

The article is about antibiotic resistance it's not really restricted to 70 year old women

PucaMama · 18-01-2017 04:45PM

Robineen wrote: »

Well, I have no problem with antibiotics being prescribed for any infection that isn't self-limiting, even lesser ones. The problem lies with use of antibiotics where they will be completely ineffective or where the infection will sort itself out.

The problem with leaving some infections to sort themselves out is that some could get worse rather than get better as expected. A seemingly fit and healthy person gets a mild chest infection and decides to fight it themselves but ends up hospitalised 2/3 weeks later with bacterial pneumonia.

irishgeo · 18-01-2017 04:45PM

Surely the WHO should be working on new antibiotics if the other companies aren't. Pretty sure the WHO is government funded.

dudara · 18-01-2017 04:46PM

pilly wrote: »

Well that's a fair enough point but it wasn't the one made in the opening article.

You have a point there. The article leads with the death of a 70 year old woman which, while sad, is hardly unexpected. People reading quickly are probably likely to dismiss the story, and therefore not get the real messages contained within.

ScumLord · 18-01-2017 04:53PM

PucaMama wrote: »

what do you mean by who? Do you need a list of names? It's well known people believe that crap.

It's not well known. We've had plenty of threads on AH about medical cannabis and I don't think anyone claimed it can cure everything. I don't think anyone even claimed it will fully cure anything, just help with things like chronic pain and appetite. The jury is out on claims its effective at reducing cancer.

I think what's going on here is your attributing an extreme claim to the pro cannabis lobby that they never made. Outside of crackpots.

dudara wrote: »

I'm not old, but I have potential susceptibility to infections due the fact that I was born with a heart defect. I'm a pretty robust person with good natural defences (I grew up on a farm), and I've only ever needed antibiotics a handful of times in my life. But still... it will only take one infection of the wrong kind.

Growing up on a farm isn't going to give your immune system anything to worry about. City folk would have a much more robust immune system because they live in human filth and are exposed to way more bacteria on a daily basis than anyone living on a farm would see, probably in their lifetime. There's also all the foreign bacterias brought in by tourists and immigrants.

When they did a study of bacteria on the new york subway they found loads of new species and things that shouldn't be.

Bottom line is cities are cesspits of bacteria. The country while on the face of it may seem dirtier at a bacterial level it's a hospital compared to any large city.

steddyeddy · 18-01-2017 04:54PM

VinLieger wrote: »

Ohh I know so lets get onto whatever the next antibiotics type cure is, we should still be allocating government funding to antibiotics to tide us over but we need medical advancements in a new direction too as antibiotics is ultimately a dead end no matter how much money you throw at it

Your best bet is animals. There's some groups looking at certain creatures that seem to be extremely resilient to bacteria.

PucaMama · 18-01-2017 05:03PM

ScumLord wrote: »

It's not well known. We've had plenty of threads on AH about medical cannabis and I don't think anyone claimed it can cure everything. I don't think anyone even claimed it will fully cure anything, just help with things like chronic pain and appetite. The jury is out on claims its effective at reducing cancer.

I think what's going on here is your attributing an extreme claim to the pro cannabis lobby that they never made. Outside of crackpots.

Growing up on a farm isn't going to give your immune system anything to worry about. City folk would have a much more robust immune system because they live in human filth and are exposed to way more bacteria on a daily basis than anyone living on a farm would see, probably in their lifetime. There's also all the foreign bacterias brought in by tourists and immigrants.

When they did a study of bacteria on the new york subway they found loads of new species and things that shouldn't be.

Bottom line is cities are cesspits of bacteria. The country while on the face of it may seem dirtier at a bacterial level it's a hospital compared to any large city.

Well those are some very loud and clear crackpots on Facebook. It's not hard to find someone claiming it "cures" cancer.

ScumLord · 18-01-2017 05:07PM

PucaMama wrote: »

Well those are some very loud and clear crackpots on Facebook. It's not hard to find someone claiming it "cures" cancer.

Everyone on facebook is a crackpot. If that's where you're getting your information from it's no wonder you're making claims like that. The amount of misinformation I see on facebook is shocking. Much of it is quite clearly nonsense but for some reason people just accept everything they read there. It's bizarre.

jimgoose · 18-01-2017 05:08PM

ScumLord wrote: »

Everyone on facebook is a crackpot. If that's where you're getting your information from it's no wonder you're making claims like that. The amount of misinformation I see on facebook is shocking. Much of it is quite clearly nonsense but for some reason people just accept everything they read there. It's bizarre.

Post-Truth, dude. It's the new Flower-Power. :cool:

ScumLord · 18-01-2017 05:11PM

My own mother shared a post about how mars was going to be as large as the moon because of planets aligning. How can anyone in their right mind think that was true. She's not that stupid, far from it but for some reason it pops up on facebook and she buys into hook line and sinker and then presses share. What happened?

Wibbs · 18-01-2017 05:26PM

PucaMama wrote: »

We aren't immune the bacteria are. So no we are all dead should a deadly enough bacteria evolve

Yes and no. For example I've never taken an antibiotic, however I have had bacterial infections and I got over them. On that basis people similar to myself who have survived multiple bacterial infections without antibiotics would be more likely to have a naturally stronger immune system compared to someone who has been regularly been treating bacterial infections with antibiotics. Such immune systems would also have been more "exercised". Even an extremely deadly pathogen like Bubonic plague had survivors whose bodies fought the bacteria. If they didn't we wouldn't be here, because at more than one point in all Eurasian readers of this thread there would have been a plague survivor.

PopePalpatine · 18-01-2017 05:38PM

ScumLord wrote: »

My own mother shared a post about how mars was going to be as large as the moon because of planets aligning. How can anyone in their right mind think that was true. She's not that stupid, far from it but for some reason it pops up on facebook and she buys into hook line and sinker and then presses share. What happened?

It's basically the Gen X/Boomer equivalent of when you were in school and one of your classmates claimed you could capture Mew in Pokemon if you went to one specific tile in the game and pressed "A" a certain amount of times...except with way more serious consequences.

ScumLord · 18-01-2017 05:39PM

Wibbs wrote: »

Yes and no. For example I've never taken an antibiotic, however I have had bacterial infections and I got over them.

Our bodies can fight off a lot of bacteria up to a point. I get recurring skin infections, for the most part I put up with them, they run their course my immune system eventually wins out. But twice now they've manage to just run riot and I had to go to hospital to get the infection treated. I'm guessing it's the same bacteria doing the infected (although maybe it's not), so even though my body has plenty of experience fighting these bacteria under certain circumstances the bacteria get the better of my immune system. Without modern medicine I'd be dead, and it would have been a pretty horrible death without that medical intervention.

PucaMama · 18-01-2017 05:48PM

ScumLord wrote: »

Everyone on facebook is a crackpot. If that's where you're getting your information from it's no wonder you're making claims like that. The amount of misinformation I see on facebook is shocking. Much of it is quite clearly nonsense but for some reason people just accept everything they read there. It's bizarre.

Claims like what? Like cannabis oil does not "cure cancer"? I would say that's fact not a claim.

The disease of disbelief in normal medicine is ridiculous. Do the anti- vaccine and the ones who scream "big pharma" any chance they get seriously believe the crap they share.

PucaMama · 18-01-2017 05:50PM

Wibbs wrote: »

Yes and no. For example I've never taken an antibiotic, however I have had bacterial infections and I got over them. On that basis people similar to myself who have survived multiple bacterial infections without antibiotics would be more likely to have a naturally stronger immune system compared to someone who has been regularly been treating bacterial infections with antibiotics. Such immune systems would also have been more "exercised". Even an extremely deadly pathogen like Bubonic plague had survivors whose bodies fought the bacteria. If they didn't we wouldn't be here, because at more than one point in all Eurasian readers of this thread there would have been a plague survivor.

Do you know what happens when a new bacteria enters a population with no previous exposure to it? Even though your body has successfully beaten infections before there are plenty out there that can still do the job.

Junkyard Tom · 18-01-2017 05:51PM

I'm nowhere near my 70's. I'm not a woman. I've never been to India. I'm safe.

steddyeddy · 18-01-2017 05:52PM

The fact an older person has died isn't the story. The fact is that one form of bacteria has acquired resistance to all drugs. In other words this bacteria contains genes which confer resistance against all forms of treatment. This might be manageable with one bacteria, but this will eventually affect all bacteria since bacteria can actually share genes, and therefore resistance with each other through conjugation.

In other words Staphylococcus aureus (MRSA), TB, flesh eating bacteria and some forms of bacteria that may cause cancer will be untreatable.

PucaMama · 18-01-2017 05:55PM

steddyeddy wrote: »

The fact an older person has died isn't the story. The fact is that one form of bacteria has acquired resistance to all drugs. In other words this bacteria contains genes which confer resistance against all forms of treatment. This might be manageable with one bacteria, but this will eventually affect all bacteria since bacteria can actually share genes, and therefore resistance with each other through conjugation.

In other words Staphylococcus aureus (MRSA), TB, flesh eating bacteria and some forms of bacteria that may cause cancer will be untreatable.

MRSA is different to normal staph. Aureus most of us carry staff around in our nose on our skin etc

gramar · 18-01-2017 05:55PM

Where's House when you need him?

jimgoose · 18-01-2017 05:56PM

PucaMama wrote: »

MRSA is different to normal staph. Aureus most of USB carry staff around in our nose on our skin etc

Indeed it is. It's methicillin-resistant - that's sort of the whole point.

18-01-2017 05:57PM

gramar wrote: »

Where's House when you need him?

He would still be on his second incorrect diagnosis at this stage

steddyeddy · 18-01-2017 06:07PM

PucaMama wrote: »

MRSA is different to normal staph. Aureus most of us carry staff around in our nose on our skin etc

Aureus isn't a problem for most, but cystic fibrosis sufferers are particularly prone to infection from it. Another reason why resistance is more than just an old people problem.

the_syco · 18-01-2017 06:15PM

ScumLord wrote: »

One 70 year old woman died, how was she the only person to become infected with it? Is it a case that a 20 year old woman wouldn't have died?

It's usually in one part of the body, but due to some cracked/broken bones, it got into where it shouldn't have been, and caused the woman to die.

Woman dies from bacteria resistant to all forms of antibiotic

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