NEW concerns about a virulent superbug emerged last night after three hospitals in Leicester admitted that it had killed at least 49 people and possibly as many as 78 this year.

The “hypervirulent” strain of the Clostridium Difficile (C Diff) superbug emerged at the Leicester Royal Infirmary, Leicester General hospital and Glenfield hospital, which is in the constituency of Patricia Hewitt, the health secretary.

The Healthcare Commission launched an inquiry earlier this year after an outbreak of the C Diff bug killed at least 20 people at Maidstone hospital in Kent. It was also responsible for the deaths of at least 33 patients at Stoke Mandeville hospital in Aylesbury, Buckinghamshire, between October 2003 and June last year.

Dr David Jenkins, director of prevention and control for University Hospitals of Leicester NHS Trust, said the bug was not new but that the latest strain was extremely virulent.

“NHS trusts are not required to keep information on those deaths where C Diff may have been a contributing factor,” he said. “However, we are analysing this as part of the battle against the new, hypervirulent strain.”

He claimed that infection in at least 20% of cases had occurred outside hospitals, but the main cause is dirty wards, overcrowding and a shortage of beds. Earlier this year the trust set up a taskforce of consultants, doctors, nurses and infection control specialists to fight the new infection.

Sylvia Greaves died in Leicester Royal Infirmary in May after being admitted for treatment on leg ulcers. Her children only learnt that she had died from the superbug after it was given as the cause of death on her death certificate.

Her son Barry Callow said: “We just want to know why this happened. Every time we ask a question the door slams shut.”

The Healthcare Commission announced an inquiry into an outbreak of C Diff at Maidstone hospital in Kent that killed six patients and was a factor in the deaths of 14 others between April and June this year. A total of 136 patients were infected with the bug in the space of three months.

The inquiry into Maidstone and Tunbridge Wells NHS Trust is one of only two that the commission has announced. It will examine outbreaks of the infection and evaluate how well the trust dealt with them.

The investigation was sought by the South East Coast Strategic Health Authority and the trust, whose three hospitals serve Maidstone and Tunbridge Wells and surrounding areas including Tonbridge and Sevenoaks.

Before the Maidstone outbreak 334 patients were infected with C Diff and at least 33 died between October 2003 and June 2005 at Stoke Mandeville hospital.

In July the Healthcare Commission published a highly critical report into the outbreak. It said that there had been serious and significant failings in the way in which senior hospital managers had responded to it.

The bacterium is found in the gut of about 3% of healthy adults and two-thirds of infants. It becomes a problem when other bacteria in the gut are disturbed, allowing C Diff to multiply and produce toxins that cause disease.

Explore UK News

• Crime News

• Education News

• Health News

• Scotland News

Times Recommends

• Should Knox’s trial even have reached the courtroom?
• All that glitters is not sold in Wright’s world
• Believe it or not, Big Brother is your friend