Eradicating Hospital Acquired Infections

For Patients Infected With Superbugs, There is Hope For Treatment

Mar 23, 2009

A new chlorine based compound has been developed to get rid of superbugs, those bugs that have become resistant to most commonly used antibiotics.

Hospital acquired infections are a major problem and patients going into the hospital for unrelated treatments are worried about becoming more ill than when they went in. Antibiotics have become ineffective but there is new hope for eradicating these bugs without the use of antibiotics.

How Common Are Hospital Acquired Infections

According to the Centers For Disease Control and Prevention ( CDC) an estimated 2 million hospital acquired infections (HAI) occur annually in the United States, resulting in about 99,000 deaths. Approximately 6% of hospitalizations result in Methicillin-Resistance Staphylococcus Areus (MRSA), 14% result in blood stream infections, and 32% result in urinary tract infections. The hospital staff and workers taking care of these patients are prone to spreading the infections because their clothing and their hands harbor the bugs.

The production of antibiotics was touted as a medical miracle, rapidly eradicating bacteria that cause these infections. However, over the years the antibiotics created what is called "resistance". This resistance resulted as bacteria changed their composition (mutation) which made them more vulnerable to attack by antibiotics. When the weaker bug is eradicated, a stronger, more prolific one is left behind and multiplies quite rapidly. The result is a generation of "superbugs" that are resistant to most of the drugs that are used. Over 70% of the bacteria causing HAI are resistant to at least one commonly used drug.

Soon to be available is a new product to combat this problem. Novabay Pharmaceuticals in Emeryville, California is developing a class of non-antibiotic, anti-infective compounds called "aganocides". These are chlorine based agents that are synthetic bioequivalent molecules having a similar action to our own infection-fighting white blood cells.

According to Dr. Ron Najafi, PhD, chemist and CEO of Novabay Pharmaceuticals, our white blood cells produce a very active form of chloral taurines that naturally fight off yeasts, fungi and gram + and gram - bugs.

"We need to augment our antibiotics with something else that doesn't give rise to resistance so quickly," says Dr. Najafi.

Novabay's compound, called NVC-422, is an antimicrobial that kills pathogens by releasing active chlorine, that weakens them by preventing the formation of colonies. This makes it difficult for the pathogen to develop resistance.

What Forms The Aganocides Will Take

For the treatment of MRSA, NVC-422 will take the form of a sprayable gel or saline spray with the active ingredients. Phase I and II studies have shown the compound to be safe and effective. The usual treatment for MRSA is Bactroban three times daily for five days, but NVC-422 will be more rapid.

"The difference is our product would be effective within 2-3 hours on the first day," says Dr. Najafi.

According to Dr. Najafi, chlorine based compounds are also being developed for blood stream infections and urinary tract infections (UTI). They are designed to be inserted into a central venous access and for UTI they will be inserted into the catheter and bladder for irrigation and levage. Projected availability will be in hospital pharmacies by 2011.

The copyright of the article Eradicating Hospital Acquired Infections in Public Healthcare Issues is owned by Sandra Gardner. Permission to republish Eradicating Hospital Acquired Infections in print or online must be granted by the author in writing.