CRE Infection in Nursing Homes
CRE – Carbapenem-resistant Enterobacteriaceae is a new high risk infectious disease. According to Wikipedia: Carbapenem-resistant enterobacteriaceae (CRE), a CRE Infection is a family of gram-negative bacterium that are nearly immune to the carbapenem class of antibiotics, considered the “drug of last resort” for such infections. Death rates of up to 50%[1] can be seen in patients with CRE Sepsis, a rate much higher than other resistant infections such as MRSA or Clostridium difficile.
According to the Centers for Disease Control, CRE was first detected in a North Carolina hospital in 2001. Since that time, it has been identified in health care facilities in 41 other states. Studies showed that 3% of patients in Chicago-area ICUs carried CRE.[2] The same data indicated a 30% infection rate in long-term care facilities (e.g. nursing homes), though not all patients are symptomatic. During just the first half of 2012, almost 200 hospitals and long-term acute care facilities treated at least one patient infected with these bacteria.[1] There is no billing code for CRE under Medicare or Medicaid, making it difficult to track on a national level in the U.S.
According to the CDC – CRE Infections Prevention
Healthy people usually do not get CRE infections. In healthcare settings, CRE infections most commonly occur among patients who are receiving treatment for other conditions. Patients whose care requires devices like ventilators (breathing machines), urinary (bladder) catheters, or intravenous (vein) catheters, and patients who are taking long courses of certain antibiotics are most at risk for CRE infections.
Frequently Asked Questions About CRE Infection – Source CDC
If you or a loved one has suffered an injury from Staph, C Diff, MRSA, VRE, CRE or any other infectious disease or other neglect or abuse in a nursing home or other care facility that serves the elderly in Minnesota please contact Attorney Kenneth L. LaBore, directly please send an email to KLaBore@mnnursinghomeneglect.com, or call Ken at 612-743-9048 or call him at his direct toll free number 1-888-452-6589.
Disclaimer
