MRSA test 'could cut cases by third'

Testing patients for MRSA before surgery could cut serious infections by more than a third, research shows today.

In the first study of its kind, University College Hospital in London used a new, faster, test for the superbug.

Almost 19,000 people were screened before treatment, with results being obtained within hours. Present tests take three days to process.

Patients in the trial had a simple swab taken from the nose. Those who were found to have the bug were given special body washes and nasal ointment before surgery.

Nationally, more than 6,300 people contracted MRSA bloodstream infections in hospitals last year. The trial cut cases by 38 per cent - suggesting almost 2,500 cases a year could be prevented.

The research, to be published in next month's British Journal Of Surgery, showed 4.5 per cent of patients already had MRSA when admitted to hospital.