Superbug spreads in Chicago-area health facilities

October 23, 2010 (CHICAGO) The number of Chicago hospitals and long-term care facilities reporting cases of the KPC bacteria is on the rise.

Between this year and last, the number of Chicago hospitals reporting infections with KPC bacteria has dramatically increased, according to a survey by Rush University Medical Center and the Cook County Department of Public Health.

The bacteria are resistant to powerful antibiotics and it can be fatal.

KPC can be spread through contact with an infected person or the unclean hands of a health care worker.

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