{"id":73553,"date":"2025-08-17T15:40:10","date_gmt":"2025-08-17T15:40:10","guid":{"rendered":"https:\/\/www.newsbeep.com\/uk\/73553\/"},"modified":"2025-08-17T15:40:10","modified_gmt":"2025-08-17T15:40:10","slug":"brits-warned-against-sharing-towels-and-razors-after-spike-in-mrsa-superbug-infections-outside-of-hospitals","status":"publish","type":"post","link":"https:\/\/www.newsbeep.com\/uk\/73553\/","title":{"rendered":"Brits warned against sharing towels and razors after spike in MRSA superbug infections outside of hospitals"},"content":{"rendered":"

By XANTHA LEATHAM, EXECUTIVE SCIENCE EDITOR<\/a> <\/p>\n

Published: 09:43 EDT, 17 August 2025 | Updated: 09:43 EDT, 17 August 2025 <\/p>\n

Brits have been urged to avoid sharing towels or razors amid an increase in cases of MRSA being contracted in the community.<\/p>\n

Data shows a total of 175 people were infected with the superbug outside of hospitals between January and March this year, up 47 per cent from the same period in 2019.<\/p>\n

Those catching the infection also appear to be getting younger, with almost a quarter of patients recorded as under 45 in 2023-24 compared to just one in 10 in 2007-08.<\/p>\n

The UK Health Security Agency (UKHSA) said they are monitoring infection rates closely to understand the underlying drivers.<\/p>\n

But people are being urged to practice good general hygiene, including regular handwashing and not sharing items like towels and razors.<\/p>\n

It follows warnings from the US over MRSA being spread in gyms and changing rooms this summer.<\/p>\n

Officials from the US Centres for Disease Control and Prevention (CDC) said: \u2018MRSA spreads fast in athletic facilities, locker rooms, gyms and health clubs because of shared equipment and skin-to-skin contact.\u2019<\/p>\n

MRSA, which stands for methicillin-resistant Staphylococcus aureus, is a bacteria that lives harmlessly on the skin or in the nose.<\/p>\n

\"Rates <\/p>\n

Rates of the superbug have been steadily increasing in the last decade following a large fall in cases between 2008 and 2012\u00a0<\/p>\n

However, it can cause serious infections if it gets into the body.<\/p>\n

If it spreads to your blood or lungs, symptoms can include chills, difficulty breathing, dizziness and confusion.<\/p>\n

Rates of the superbug have been steadily increasing in the last decade following a large fall in cases between 2008 and 2012.<\/p>\n

The UK data does not record where patients contracted the bug outside hospitals.<\/p>\n

Colin Brown, a director of antimicrobial assistance and healthcare-related infections at the UKSHA, told The Times<\/a>: \u2018The overall risk of MRSA bloodstream infections to the public in hospital and community settings remains low [and] substantially below the last peak observed in the early 2000s.<\/p>\n

\u2018It is too early to conclude whether the current rise represents a sustained shift; however, the trend is being monitored closely through surveillance and analysis to better understand the underlying drivers.<\/p>\n

\u2018This will include further analysis of patient characteristics, such as residential type.<\/p>\n

\u2018Outbreaks of these infections in community settings can be managed through maintaining good general hygiene, including regular handwashing and not sharing items such as towels and razors.\u2019<\/p>\n

\"MRSA <\/p>\n

MRSA lives harmlessly on the skin and in the nose, but can cause serious infections if it gets into the body (stock image)<\/p>\n

Andrew Edwards, associate professor of molecular biology at Imperial College London, said those who catch MRSA in hospital tended to be older or already ill.<\/p>\n

However, younger patients who catch it outside of hospitals are often in sports teams or gym users, which raises \u2018a few red flags\u2019.<\/p>\n

\u2018We need to keep a very close eye on whether we are seeing a lot more community transition of MRSA between otherwise healthy people \u2026 and watch to see whether this is a blip in the numbers or the beginning of a worrying new trend,\u2019 he said.<\/p>\n

He urged gym users to \u2018check yourself carefully and be aware you might have abrasions that are not immediately obvious – if you do have any, cover those and just be aware.\u2019<\/p>\n

WHAT IS MRSA?<\/a><\/p>\n

Methicillin-resistant Staphylococcus aureus (MRSA) is a type of bacteria that is resistant to several widely-used antibiotics, which makes it particularly hard to treat.<\/p>\n

Catching the infection early could prevent it spreading and infecting others.<\/p>\n

Approximately 30 per cent of people carry the Staphylococcus aureus bacteria even in their nose, armpits, groin or buttocks without realising it.<\/p>\n

This can invade the body’s bloodstream and release poisonous toxins that kill up to one-fifth of infected patients.<\/p>\n

MRSA is most commonly associated with hospitals.\u00a0<\/p>\n

As well as being highly drug resistant, current screening methods are fairly inaccurate, which allows the infection to spread as a patient moves around both within and outside hospitals.<\/p>\n

Even when the infection is successfully treated, it doubles the average length of a patient’s hospital stay, as well as increasing healthcare costs.<\/p>\n

The WHO recently classified MRSA as high priority on its list for the Research and Development of new drugs.<\/p>\n

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