What is an advantage to using phage therapy over antibiotics?
In terms of “Pros,” for example, phages can be bactericidal, can increase in number over the course of treatment, tend to only minimally disrupt normal flora, are equally effective against antibiotic-sensitive and antibiotic-resistant bacteria, often are easily discovered, seem to be capable of disrupting bacterial …
Can phage cure MRSA?
After the process of phage isolation specifically against MRSA, they can be used as an alternative therapy to treat MRSA infections. Due to the inability of bacteriophages to enter mammalian cells, no side effects on eukaryotic cells have been reported [11].
Why are phages useful in treating bacterial infections in humans?
Introduction. Bacteriophages (BPs) are viruses that can infect and kill bacteria without any negative effect on human or animal cells. For this reason, it is supposed that they can be used, alone or in combination with antibiotics, to treat bacterial infections (Domingo-Calap and Delgado-Martínez, 2018).
What is phage therapy Why might it be an alternative to antibiotics?
Phages are much more specific to their bacterial targets than antibiotics. This is beneficial during treatment because the phages will not be able to harm any other bacterial strains other than the one they are targeted to, leaving beneficial gut bacteria unaffected4.
How is phage therapy administered?
Phages administered subcutaneously or through surgical drains in 236 patients having antibiotic-resistant infections eliminated the infections in 92% of the patients.
What diseases can be treated with phage therapy?
To give but a few examples, phages have been reported to be effective in treating staphylococcal lung infections (22, 33), P. aeruginosa infections in cystic fibrosis patients (50), eye infections (43), neonatal sepsis (38), urinary tract infections (40), and surgical wound infections (39, 41).
Can MRSA be treated with vancomycin?
Treatment options for health care–associated MRSA or community-associated MRSA pneumonia include seven to 21 days of intravenous vancomycin or linezolid, or clindamycin (600 mg orally or intravenously three times per day) if the strain is susceptible.
Are bacteriophages useful treatment for superbug infections?
Antibiotic resistant bacteria are a growing threat, causing deadly infections that cannot be cured by our standard antibiotics.
What are the risks of phage therapy?
TABLE 2
| Bacteriophages | Antibiotics |
|---|---|
| No serious side effects have been described. | Multiple side effects, including intestinal disorders, allergies, and secondary infections (e.g., yeast infections) have been reported (76). |
Is phage therapy approved by FDA?
No form of phage therapy is currently FDA approved, so it can only be used in emergency, experimental, or compassionate use cases. The rise of antibiotic resistance may have one silver lining.
What is MRSA precautions?
To prevent MRSA infections, healthcare personnel: Clean their hands with soap and water or an alcohol-based hand sanitizer before and after caring for every patient. Carefully clean hospital rooms and medical equipment. Use Contact Precautions when caring for patients with MRSA (colonized, or carrying, and infected).
What is the standard treatment for MRSA?
At home — Treatment of MRSA at home usually includes a 7- to 10-day course of an antibiotic (by mouth) such as trimethoprim-sulfamethoxazole (brand name: Bactrim), clindamycin, minocycline, linezolid, or doxycycline.
Is phage therapy FDA approved?
What does phage therapy target?
Phages, formally known as bacteriophages, are viruses that solely kill and selectively target bacteria. They are the most common biological entities in nature, and have been shown to effectively fight and destroy multi-drug resistant bacteria.