Multi-resistant pathogens

Multi-resistant pathogens (MRE), against which hardly any antibiotics are effective, are on the rise worldwide. The World Health Organization (WHO) now sees antibiotic resistance as a serious threat because it significantly reduces success in the fight against infections.

While healthy people are hardly at risk from multi-resistant pathogens, transmission to particularly vulnerable and weakened people can lead to life-threatening infections. This particularly affects inpatient stays in hospitals and inpatient care in retirement homes.

According to the  Robert Koch Institute (opens in a new tab), an estimated 400,000 to 600,000 hospital infections occur every year in Germany during inpatient stays. Around 10,000 to 20,000 of these so-called nosocomial infections are fatal. Some of these are caused by multi-resistant pathogens for which antibiotics are no longer effective or only work with difficulty.

As things stand today, the detection of multidrug-resistant pathogens limits the options for therapy. In addition, the detection of multi-resistant pathogens may lead to longer hospital stays and in some cases to considerable burdens, for example due to isolation measures. In addition, higher costs are incurred for medications, wound care and nursing supplies.

In order to successfully deal with multi-resistant pathogens, regionally coordinated action is needed within medical facilities. According to the Robert Koch Institute, there are now over 100 regional MRE networks in Germany.

The regional MRE network in Stuttgart, which is managed by the public health department, was founded in 2012. Numerous facilities work together here, including hospitals, rehabilitation clinics, nursing services, nursing homes for the elderly, facilities for people with disabilities, the Stuttgart medical profession, health insurance companies, laboratories, rescue services, ambulance services and the city of Stuttgart. The basis for the cooperation is the  Medical Hygiene Ordinance (MedHygVO) of the state of Baden-Württemberg (opens in a new tab).

If you have any questions on the subject of multi-resistant pathogens or would like more detailed information, we recommend our leaflets and the links to the websites of the professional associations.

For direct contact, please send an e-mail to  MRE-Netz Stuttgart or call  0711 216-59378.

A complete overview of all flyers and leaflets on the subject of MRE can be found on the website of the  Baden-Württemberg State Health Office (opens in a new tab). The flyers are available in German, English, Arabic, Turkish, Russian and Croatian.