SCOTTISH HOSPITAL NEWS
WORRYING NEWS ON SKIN CANCER
HEALTHCARE-ASSOCIATED
INFECTIONS STATISTICS RELEASED HEALTH PROTECTION SCOTLAND (HPS) HAS REVEALED ITS LATEST QUARTERLY FIGURES RELATING TO HEALTHCARE-ASSOCIATED INFECTIONS.
The report brings together data relating to the most important types of healthcare associated infections (HAIs): Clostridium difficile infection (CDI), Escherichia coli bacteraemia (
E.coli), Staphylococcus aureus bacteraemia (SAB) and Surgical Site Infection (SSI) for the period July- September 2016.
CDI: During Q3 2016, 257 new CDI cases in patients were reported to HPS. In the previous quarter there were 221 cases, so this corresponds to an incidence rate of 29.8 cases per 100 000 total occupied bed days (TOBDs) - an increase compared to 24.3 per 100 000 TOBDs in the previous quarter.
E.coli: HPS revealed that 1302 cases of the potentially deadly bug
E.coli were reported between July and September of last year: a rate of 96.4 cases per 100,000 population. These figures included an
E.coli
Cases of the UK’s most common cancers are set to rise by a staggering 78.2 per cent from 2010 to 2025 according to figures released in the British Journal of Dermatology.
The study looked at the two main types of non-melanoma skin cancer (NMSC): Basal Cell Carcinoma (BCC) and Squamous Cell Carcinoma (SCC). Treating this epidemic will cost over £338 million a year by 2025, the study found.
The study did not include the deadliest type of skin cancer, called melanoma, which will further add to this burden.
The predicted cost of diagnosing and treating these cases of skin cancer is estimated to be £289 to £399 million a year in 2020, rising to £338 to £465 million in 2025.
Year: 2010 BCC: 180,725 SCC per year nationwide: 32,492 Total NMSC
per year nationwide: 213,217 Cost to NHS per year: £189 to £261 million Year: 2020 BCC: 258,946 SCC per year nationwide: 66,671 Total NMSC per year nationwide: 325,617 Cost to NHS per year: £289 to £399 million Year: 2025 BCC: 298,308 SCC per year nationwide: 81,694 Total NMSC per year nationwide: 380,002 Cost to NHS per year: £338 to £465 million
‘The UK has been fighting to combat the rising tide of skin cancer over the last few decades,’ said Matthew Gass of the British Association of Dermatologists, ‘and this research shows that things are going to get worse. As it stands, many dermatology departments are struggling to manage the increasing rates of skin cancer, at a cost to people with other skin diseases. This research is invaluable in that it gives us a snapshot of what the future holds, giving the NHS and the Government the opportunity to plan ahead and prepare. We can only hope that the warning is heeded.’
outbreak during the summer during which more than 20 people were infected and a three-year-old girl died. The HPS figures for
E.coli infection found that the majority of the 1302 cases – 720 - were found in patients who had not been in contact with healthcare, while 582 cases were ‘healthcare associated’.
SAB: During Q3 2016, 400 new SAB cases were reported to HPS. In the previous quarter there were 381 SAB cases. This corresponds to an overall incidence rate of 33.2 SAB cases per 100 000 acute occupied bed days (AOBDs) compared to 31.1 per 100 000 AOBDs in the previous quarter. The proportion of SAB which were MRSA during Q3 2016 was 4.5 per cent, with 18 MRSA cases identified in Scotland.
SSI: This is one of the most common HAI in Scotland. During Q3 2016, 69 cases (1.6 per cent) of SSI following caesarean section procedures were reported to HPS, with a further thirteen cases (0.6 per cent) of SSI following hip arthroplasty procedure also reported.
HEARTBURN PILLS MAY BE LINKED TO ASTHMA
New research from the University of Edinburgh has shown that children born to mothers who take heartburn medication during pregnancy may have a greater risk of developing asthma. The research team found that children born to mothers who had been prescribed acid-blocking drugs during pregnancy were at least one third more likely to have visited a doctor for symptoms of asthma. Experts say, however, that the
FUNGUS PLAYING ‘HIDE AND SEEK’: RESEARCH
Experts from the University of Aberdeen have discovered how the fungus which causes thrush tries to hide from our body’s defences. In a significant new study researchers from the university’s Aberdeen Fungal Group and Medical Research Council Centre for Medical Mycology have revealed
potential link is not conclusive and advice for expectant mums should not change based on these findings because further studies are needed.
ways in which the fungus can ‘hide’ from our immune system. ‘We’ve discovered that this fungus is a moving target for our immune defences,’ said Professor Al Brown. ‘It is very good at adapting to the environments within us and, through evolution, it has developed new ways to avoid being detected by our defences. The fungus is playing a deadly game of hide- and-seek.’
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