A study published in the Emergency Medicine Journal and authored by Cody Vaughn Gibson at the Department of Natural Sciences, Calhoun Community College in Alabama, investigated whether emergency medical services oxygen (O2) equipment aids the transmission of the ‘superbug’ MRSA.
Researchers tested nine O2 tanks carried by three ambulances based at an emergency medical services (EMS) station in Alabama. They found MRSA, or methicillin-resistant Staphylococcus aureus, on all nine tanks. They also swabbed O2 tanks in a storage area, finding MRSA on 96% of the stored cylinders.
MRSA infections are difficult to treat because the bacteria are resistant to common antibiotics. Although usually mild, MRSA infections still cause thousands of deaths each year.
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