Hospital superbug cases down 10%

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Statistics published by the Health Protection Agency (HPA) reveal there were 6,378 cases reported in England between April 2006 and March 2007, compared with 7,096 for the previous year.

Latest quarterly figures show a 6.4% drop in MRSA cases in England between January and March 2007, with 1,444 cases reported compared to 1,542, in the previous quarter.

But the figures also show that the reported number of cases of the hospital bug Clostridium Difficile has risen by 22%.

There were 15,592 cases in patients aged 65 and over in England in the first quarter (January to March) of 2007, up from 12,797 cases during the last quarter of 2006 (October to December).

This recent rise could be caused by the high numbers of vulnerable people admitted to hospital at this time of year, the HPA said. Compared with the first quarter of 2006, there was a rise in 2007 of 2%.

Dr Georgia Duckworth, head of the HPA's healthcare associated infection and antimicrobial resistance department, said: "Certain hospitals have made great strides in bringing down their levels of MRSA, for example by targeting interventions at risk areas and procedures, such as indwelling devices.

"As a result they have managed to achieve significant reductions in the number of infections."

The HPA began publishing quarterly surveillance figures on health associated infection in January 2007 to help hospitals to act quickly in their efforts to reduce occurrences.

The latest statistics show that the biggest falls in MRSA infection have been in London, which previously had the highest number of cases, and in acute teaching trusts.