http://medicalxpress.com/ en-us Medical Xpress internet news portal provides the latest news on Health and Medicine. As public health authorities across the globe grapple with the growing problem of antibiotic resistance, Tufts University School of Medicine microbiologists and colleagues have identified the unique resistance mechanisms of a clinical isolate of E. coli resistant to carbapenems. Carbapenems are a class of antibiotics used as a last resort for the treatment of disease-causing bacteria, including E. coli and Klebsiella pneumonia, which can cause serious illness and even death. Infections involving resistant strains fail to respond to antibiotic treatments, which can lead to prolonged illness and greater risk of death, as well as significant public health challenges due to increased transmission of infection. The study, published in the April issue of Antimicrobial Agents and Chemotherapy, demonstrates the lengths to which bacteria will go to become resistant to antibiotics. http://medicalxpress.com/news/2013-03-unique-mechanisms-antibiotic-resistance.html Diseases, Conditions, Syndromes Tue, 26 Mar 2013 11:06:11 EST news283514765 (AP) -- Lab workers at the San Francisco Veterans Affairs medical center will be urged to get vaccinations for the diseases they study as a precaution as investigators continue looking into a researcher's death after he handled a rare strain of bacteria, officials said Thursday. http://medicalxpress.com/news/2012-05-ca-lab-revisits-safety-dies.html Other Fri, 04 May 2012 02:40:02 EST news255314093 When it comes to treating cystic fibrosis, the current standard of aggressive antibiotic treatments may not always be the best answer, a decade-long study led by researchers at the University of Michigan has found. http://medicalxpress.com/news/2012-03-decade-long-antibiotic-cystic-fibrosis.html Medical research Mon, 26 Mar 2012 15:00:01 EST news251982787 One of the most comprehensive studies to date of the microbes that are found in extremely low-birthweight infants found that hard-to-treat Candida fungus is often present, as well as some harmful bacteria and parasites. http://medicalxpress.com/news/2011-12-premature-babies-harbor-dangerous-microbe.html Diseases, Conditions, Syndromes Thu, 08 Dec 2011 17:24:17 EST news242587451