MRSA infection rates drop 7% in two years

MRSA infection rates have fallen by 7% compared with 2006, latest figures from the Health Protection Surveillance Centre (HPSC) show.

The figures, taken for the first six months of this year, have fallen by 3.5% compared with last year.

However, the HPSC has warned that a growing number of other infections are showing an increased resistance to drugs. These include streptoccus pneumoniae, the most common cause of pneumonia outside hospitals and an noted cause of meningitis in children, E coli, and vancomycin-resistant enterococcus (VRE). Ireland has one of the highest rates of antibiotic usage in Europe.