Multidrug-resistant bacterial illness spreading in U.S.
Infection prevention // International travelers are bringing a multidrug-resistant intestinal illness to the United States, according to a new report by the Centers for Disease Control and Prevention (CDC). The Shigella sonnei bacteria sickened 243 people in 32 states and Puerto Rico between May 2014 and February 2015 as ill travelers returned to the United States and infected others. Nearly 90 percent of the cases tested were resistant to ciprofloxacin (Cipro), the first choice to treat shigellosis in U.S. adults. “Drug-resistant infections are harder to treat and because Shigella spreads so easily between people, the potential for more — and larger — outbreaks is a real concern,” says CDC Director Tom Frieden, MD.