Report: Texas county had more than 600 cases of MRSA infection

San Antonio, TXThe Texas Department of State Health Services has found that in a single month this year, Bexar County reported more than 600 cases of MRSA hospital infections.

span itemprop="image" itemscope itemtype="https://schema.org/ImageObject" style="display:block">The report was part of a pilot study approved by the state legislature in 2007 that was originally aimed to look at the rate of hospital infections for 12 months, the San Antonio Express-News reports. However, because a majority of healthcare workers said they felt the study would get in the way of daily operations, the length of the study was cut down from 12 months to one, and was conducted this past March.

Some health officials in the area said the report was hardly a fair indication of the prevalence of hospital acquired infections and that this kind of condition occurs every day.

"I would say (the study) was a significant underestimate," Dr. Bryan Alsip, assistant director of the Metropolitan Health District, told the Express-News. "In terms of just sheer prevalence, it's a daily thing for any outpatient clinic in this community, and in the country, for that matter."

The patients who were screened reportedly ranged in age from 1 month to 100 years, with half of them 40 years or older.