Health officials fear spread of lung-destroying pneumonia
Deaths from the combination of a skin infection and the common flu have increased, authorities say.
Health authorities have detected the emergence of a rare but deadly lung-destroying form of pneumonia, sparked by the combination of a skin infection and the common flu.
The national Centers for Disease Control and Prevention reported 22 deaths among children last year from the dual infection.
Numbers from the 2007-2008 flu season won't be released until next month, but officials say deaths have increased. The CDC has just begun tracking cases among all age groups.
The number of fatalities, though low, is a sharp increase from previous years, and infectious disease experts worry that an ongoing epidemic of skin infections could drive the numbers higher.
The double infection has appeared before: It was the leading cause of bacterial pneumonia deaths during the 1957-1958 flu pandemic, which killed 2 million people worldwide, including about 70,000 in the U.S.
This time, health authorities are putting out a call for people to get an annual flu vaccine to protect themselves.
"Since so many of these pneumonias are associated with influenza, the best prevention is to prevent influenza," said Jeffrey C. Hageman, a CDC epidemiologist.
The main culprit is a strain of the bacterium Staphylococcus aureus. About 1 in 3 people carries some variety of Staphylococcus in the nose or skin, usually without harm.
An antibiotic-resistant strain known as methicillin-resistant Staphylococcus aureus, or MRSA, has been a known killer since it emerged in hospitals in the 1960s, preying on the elderly and frail.
But in the last decade, a new, more virulent strain has emerged outside of hospitals, causing an explosion in severe skin infections.
The infections can be spread by skin-to-skin contact; by sharing towels and other personal items; or from infected surfaces. Outbreaks are common among people who play contact sports.
Most of the skin infections heal after being opened and drained of pus. In a few cases, the bacteria can cause severe, invasive infections of bones, joints, blood and lungs.
The community strain is not as resistant to antibiotics as the hospital strain. What makes it so lethal is the toxins it produces.
Health authorities began to notice a few years ago that the community strain and the common flu seemed to be teaming up to create a dangerous confluence of infection.
- State Investigates Men's Staph Infections Mar 03, 2003
- Staph germ causes deadly pneumonia Jan 22, 2007
- Bacteria played role in 1918 viral flu deaths, scientists say Aug 18, 2008
