antibitiotic resistance

Last week, FDA warned healthcare providers that the complex design of a piece of endoscopy eqiupment may make it hard to fully disinfect -- which means that using it, even in accordance with the manufacturers' instructions, might allow dangerous bacteria to spread between patients. The warning follows reports of seven patients from UCLA's Ronald Reagan Medical Center becoming infected with the drug-resistant "nightmare bacteria" CRE (Carbapenem-Resistant Enterobacteriaceae) after undergoing procedures using ERCP endoscopes, or duodenoscopes. Of these seven patients, two died, and "the…