超級細菌對抗生素的耐藥性越來越強，全球的公共衛(wèi)生官員都很震驚。而一項新近公布的研究顯示，一些本為防止感染的措施可能是情勢惡化的原因之一。

澳大利亞的研究人員發(fā)現(xiàn)，某些細菌對醫(yī)院常用洗手液里的關(guān)鍵成分——即清潔液常用成分的酒精耐受性越來越強，尤其是對多種藥物均有耐藥性的超級細菌屎腸球菌。

研究者在報告中指出，標準的酒精型洗手液越來越難以殺除一些可能會感染消化道、膀胱、心臟等器官的細菌。美國全國公共廣播電臺（NPR）的報道稱，有些細菌需要酒精濃度達到70%的洗手液才能最終被殺死，可是在常見的洗手液中，酒精含量只有60%。

值得注意的是，研究者在醫(yī)學(xué)期刊《科學(xué)轉(zhuǎn)化醫(yī)學(xué)》（ Science Translational Medicine）發(fā)表的研究中提到，洗手液仍然是重要的殺菌工具，醫(yī)院里某些類型感染的確減少，但另外一些感染卻在增加。該研究報告寫道，“以酒精為基本成分的殺菌劑是世界各地醫(yī)院控制感染的重要手段”，但“對多種藥物產(chǎn)生耐藥性的細菌屎腸球菌對醫(yī)院普遍使用的殺菌手段耐受性越來越強，比如用洗手液殺菌。這些發(fā)現(xiàn)可能有助于解釋，為何近來醫(yī)院里的病原菌增多。”

相關(guān)發(fā)現(xiàn)“意味著，細菌的適應(yīng)性導(dǎo)致控制感染建議措施的效果變差，有必要采取其他措施防止屎腸球菌在醫(yī)院蔓延。”

具體該怎么做？首先，接觸此類細菌的人可能得用肥皂洗手，而不能只用之前覺得可以殺菌的酒精洗手液。如果希望阻止耐藥細菌傳播，尤其是在醫(yī)院里擴散，關(guān)鍵是要確保將細菌洗掉沖入下水道，不能殘留在手上。（財富中文網(wǎng)）

譯者：Pessy

審稿：夏林

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The specter, and ongoing rise, of antibiotic resistant superbugs has shaken public health officials around the world. But a new study underscores how even practices meant to curb preventable infections may wind up, at least partially, making matters worse.

Australian researchers found that some kinds of bacteria (specifically, the multidrug-resistant superbug Enterococcus faecium) have grown “increasingly tolerant” to a key component of the hand sanitizers ubiquitously used in hospitals—namely, the alcohol that forms the basis of these common hand sanitizers.

The study authors noted that some of these bacteria, which may affect the digestive tract, the bladder, the heart, and other body parts, are getting harder to kill via standard alcohol based hand sanitizers. In fact, some took a 70% alcohol mixture to eventually kill the bugs, above the 60% mixtures in most common products, according to NPR.

It’s important to note that the hand sanitizers are still important tools—certain kinds of infections actually did decrease in hospitals, though others saw a rise, as the researchers explain in the study published in Science Translational Medicine. “Alcohol-based disinfectants are a key way to control hospital infections worldwide,” the write, but “the multidrug-resistant bacterium Enterococcus faecium has become increasingly tolerant to the alcohols in widely used hospital disinfectants such as hand rub solutions. These findings may help explain the recent increase in this pathogen in hospital settings.”

The overall findings “suggest that bacterial adaptation is complicating infection control recommendations, necessitating additional procedures to prevent E. faecium from spreading in hospital settings,” the continued.

So just what does that mean? For one, people who come into contact with these kinds of bacteria may want to wash their hands thoroughly with soap instead of just relying on what they might think is a bacteria-killing, alcohol-based hand sanitizer. Making sure that bacteria are flushed down a drain rather than potentially remaining on your hands could be critical to stopping the spread of resistant bugs, especially in hospitals.