Nearly 20,000 U.S. Staph Deaths Last Year, CDC Reports

Nearly 20,000 U.S. Staph Deaths Last Year, CDC Reports

CDC experts say health care tactics such as decolonization (reducing germs people may carry and spread) before surgery and following CDC's current recommendations could prevent more staph infections.

A new Vital Signs report from CDC says more than 119,000 bloodstream infections and nearly 20,000 deaths are attributable to staph, showing that —despite reductions to date—staph infections still threaten patients in the United States. The report underscore that all staph can be deadly and that health care providers and administrators can take prevention steps to protect their patients.

The report includes results derived from electronic health records at more than 400 acute care hospitals, the experts said in a briefing March 5.