Superbug Deaths Higher in India Than High-Income Countries

A first-of-a-kind study show that deaths related to superbugs are twice as higher in India than in high-income countries.

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The study conducted by researchers from John Hopkins University School of Medicine and the Center for Disease Dynamics, Economics and Policy (CDDEP), found that the mortality rate in India due to superbugs is 13 percent, while in high-income countries that figure ranged between 2 to 7 percent.

Researchers conducted the study on 4,000 patients in 10 hospitals across India, to reach the findings.

A superbug, or MRSA, “is a type of bacteria that's resistant to several widely-used antibiotics. This means infections with MRSA can be harder to treat than other bacterial infections," according to the NHS.

These bacteria are multi-drug reistant (MDR). Newborns, young children, and the elderly are particularly suceptible to them.

The study also predicted that infections generated by superbugs are projected to increase four times by 2030, with low and middle-income countries suffering the worst impact.

The study, which is titled, “The mortality burden of multi-drug resistant pathogens in India: a retrospective observational study,” is published in Clinical Infectious Diseases, here.