Norway Fights MRSA With Fewer Drugs

Norway has reduced cases of the “superbug” MRSA to very low levels. This has occurred even this infection is growing around the world. The main reason? Doctors in Norway prescribe fewer antibiotics. This effort began 25 years ago, the Associated Press reported January 4. Hospital patients with MRSA are isolated. Medical staff who test positive stay at home. Doctors also track contacts of people with MRSA and test them. MRSA stands for methicillin-resistant Staphylococcus aureus. Standard antibiotics can’t cure it. The use of antibiotics helps spur resistance. The bacteria that survive usually are the resistant ones. Then they grow and infect other people. In Norway, antibiotics are used less. This gives bacteria less chance to become resistant. Most cases occur in someone who has been abroad.