MRSA screening 'does not stop infection spreading'

The government strategy to battle MRSA at hospitals by screening patients has been called into question by a study which suggests it does not stop the infection spreading.

Geneva University compared the superbug rates of more than 20,000 surgical patients. It found screening did not reduce the number of patients who caught the infection during their hospital stays.

In the Swiss study, those found to be carrying MRSA in the screening group were exposed to a range of measures, including isolation and decontamination.

Some 93 of the screened patients contracted MRSA infections while in the hospital. That compared to 76 infected in the wards where standard prevention efforts were in place.

"Overall, our real-life trial did not show an added benefit for widespread rapid screening on admission compared with standard MRSA control alone in preventing (hospital) MRSA infections in a large surgical department," study leader Dr Stephan Harbarth wrote.

There were 1,072 MRSA cases reported in England during July to September 2007. The government has called for NHS hospitals to introduce screening for routine operations by next year and for emergency patients over the next three years.

But the latest report recommended targeting the screening to patients undergoing elective surgery with a high risk of MRSA infection.

Roughly 85 per cent of MRSA cases, which is treatable only with a few antibiotics, occur in hospitals, where infection can kill weakened patients.

Hospitals undertake several approaches to combat outbreaks such as strict hand-washing by staff, frequent equipment changes, and extensive cleaning of operating rooms.