Antibiotic-Resistant Infections Spiking in Children

The dangers of antibiotic-resistant bacteria have reached the pediatric ward. According to a new study, the number of hospitalized children in the U.S. infected with bacteria resistant to multiple types of antibiotic drugs surged between 2007 and 2015. The study is the first to confirm the extent of infections with multidrug-resistant (MDR) bacteria—superbugs, many experts call them—among children, and underscores the alarming proliferation of bacterial pathogens our medications no longer treat.  

To investigate the prevalence of MDR bacteria among children, researchers from studied patient data from 48 children’s hospitals across the country. Using diagnostic and a bacterial family that includes and , among many others. And among these diagnoses, they singled out those that were categorized as multi-drug resistant.