Seven children die from bacterial infection at Trinidad hospital
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[April 13, 2024]
By Curtis Williams
(Reuters) -Seven infants have died in four days from a bacterial
infection at Trinidad's Port of Spain General Hospital, said the
island's health authorities.
The Port of Spain General Hospital is the main health care facility in
the island's capital city.
The outbreak occurred at the neonatal intensive care unit of the
hospital, according to a release from the country's North West Regional
Health Authority (NWRHA), responsible for the hospital's management.
The children died from late-onset neonatal sepsis, a condition known for
its rapid onset and potentially devastating consequences, said the NWRHA.
All the victims were children who were prematurely born at less than 32
weeks old and required intensive care support, the Trinidad health
authorities said.
Laboratory investigations revealed there were at least three types of
bacteria of concern in the ward, Serratia marcescens, ESBL Klebsiella
pneumoniae, and Klebsiella aerogenes, said the NWRHA.
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![](http://archives.lincolndailynews.com/2024/Apr/13/images/ads/current/graue_lda_SFARM_2024.png) "Despite administering high-dose
antibiotics and providing advanced and intensive cardio-respiratory
support, the infection claimed the lives of some of these preterm
babies," the NWRHA said in a statement last night.
The ward has been sprayed with chemicals to kill
the bacteria, and the outbreak is contained with no new deaths since
April 7th, said the NWRHA.
The Trinidad government has asked the Pan American Health
Organization (PAHO) to assist it in the investigation into the
deaths of the infants, its health Minister Terrence Deyalsingh told
the island's Parliament on Friday.
He said the government wanted to probe what happened and, apart from
its own internal investigation, it is seeking help from the regional
body.
(Reporting by Curtis Williams in Houston; Editing by Sharon
Singleton and Aurora Ellis)
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