Hutt Valley ‘super bugs’ identified

A strain of antibiotic-resistant ‘‘superbugs’ found in five people living in the Wellington region has been identified. However, its country of origin is still not clear.

Microbiologist Kristin Dyet, along with her team at the Institute of Environmental Science and Research (ESR), had been working to find out the source of the ‘‘concerning’’ bugs after they were discovered in August by Hutt Valley District Health Board.

While they had been able to identify the particular bug – Escherichia coli – Dyet said its source was still a mystery.

‘‘Most of the cases we get in New Zealand involve international travel. This particular cluster did not . . . It’s not something we see every day.

‘‘This is a type of resistance that we’re really worried about so we want to ensure that it’s not spreading in the community.’’

ESR’s Antibiotic Reference Laboratory is responsible for national surveillance of antimicrobial resistance among human pathogens, on behalf of the Ministry of Health.

The research team wasn’t ruling out that a person who had been overseas and subsequently came into contact with the five infected people, was the source of the strain.

‘‘Overseas they are finding that sometimes people can become infected by the environment but I don’t think that’s happening in New Zealand so it’s more likely that there’s a source out there that we’re not aware of,’’ Dyet said.