VRE

Vancomycin Resistant Enterococcus (VRE) is a bacterium that is not dangerous to an individual unless it gets into your urinary tract or an open wound; it then becomes life threatening. VRE is a leading cause of meningitis and urinary tract infections. If you become infected with this disease while in surgery it could kill you.

A person can be a carrier of the VRE germ and pass it on to others but not get sick themselves. This particular disease is very contagious and people most often get infected whilst in hospital. The mortality rate for this disease is around 40%.

Symptoms

Symptoms of VRE include:

• Fever
• Tachypnoea
• Prolonged capillary refill
• Hypothermia
• Tachycardia
• Hypotension
• Diarrhoea
• Cool and clammy extremities
• Hypoxemia
• Shortness of breath
• Diaphoresis
• Nausea
• Vomiting
• Abdonminal pain
• Coma
• Rash
• Delirium
• Dysuria
• Abdominal tenderness
• Flank pain
• Confusion
• Treatment

New antimicrobials, such as linezolid and quinupristin and dalfopristin, are available for treatment of VRE infection

Find out more about Superbugs Caught in Hospitals

This website contains general information about medical conditions and treatments. The information is not advice, and should not be treated as such. Please read our medical disclaimer.