Please distribute this story as widely as possible. The spread of MRSA both in and out of hospital is a big problem that we have been warned about since 2005 by the physicians at Doctors Opposing Circumcision. It is now making headlines and it is only going to get worse. Beth Israel Hospital in Boston is affiliated with Harvard. I think we can safely guess that, if there is lax infection control in this institution, it’s probably the “canary in the coal mine” for other institutions. With economic cut backs we know that cleaning services are not going to improve. It’s time to bring an end to the unnecessary cutting of baby genitals. The writing has been on the wall for a long time but a moratorium on circumcision can no longer be delayed. Physicians are well aware that babies are dying from this antibiotic resistant strain of staph infection but it has not been publically displayed so they have been able to perpetuate the circumcision ritual. It’s now time for the AAP to take decisive action to protect families from the nightmare of MRSA in circumcision wounds.

These are some of the news stories coming out of Beth Israel Hospital.

http://www.boston.com/news/health/articles/2009/04/11/state_details_safety_lapses_at_beth_israel/

Quote: And, on several occasions, the investigators observed worrisome lapses related to circumcisions, including an instance when a nurse didn’t change gloves before tending to the dressings of a baby. Of the 19 infants who have become ill with the drug-resistant staph infection, 15 have been boys, according to Dr. Anita Barry, who is overseeing the investigation of the cases by the Boston Public Health Commission.

“I think the circumcision dressing example was one we found particularly problematic,” Dreyer said. “You’ve got examples of contamination that may be in the context of kids with open wounds from circumcision. The danger is spread of infection.”



End of quote.



Update of story here: http://www.boston.com/lifestyle/family/articles/2009/04/10/beth_israel_faulted_for_staph_outbreak_in_mothers_babies/?comments=all&plckCurrentPage=0 or http://tinyurl.com/cp3r6s

Quote: The father, who asked to remain anonymous to protect his family’s privacy, said his son was born in January, after the hospital was aware that there was a problem involving the MRSA bacteria. He said he wished he had been told what symptoms related to MRSA to look for when they were discharged, rather than be “kept in the dark.”

The pediatrician alerted them to a problem after noticing several red marks the size of a pencil point on his son’s genital area, he said, and within days, the tiny marks turned into “blisters filled with pus.” End of quote



Doctors Opposing Circumcision paper on MRSA complete with photos:

http://www.doctorsopposingcircumcision.org/DOC/mrsa.html Feel free to repost, link or cut and paste —-this is a very urgent matter. Let prospective parents and medical workers know about this problem.

