Medical Xpress October 21, 2024
Anyone who has spent time inside a neonatal intensive care unit (NICU) knows it’s intense.
For the tiny babies cared for in these wards, any infection could prove fatal. Great care is taken to prevent the spread of pathogens, but outbreaks still occur.
Traditionally, detecting outbreaks within a NICU has been reactive—only after multiple babies fall ill at the same time.
Our research is advancing the use of whole-genome sequencing technologies to detect outbreaks early and stamp out bacteria before they threaten more babies.
From reactive to proactive
NICU outbreak surveillance usually involves monitoring rates of illness and identifying spikes and long-term trends that may point to a pathogen circulating on the ward.
When a potential outbreak is identified, bacteria...
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