A man died at Dublin's Beaumont Hospital from pneumonia that was complicated by MRSA, an inquest has heard.
Anthony O'Leary (69), a nursing home resident at TLC Centre, Santry, developed an abscess on a wound that tested positive for MRSA the day after he was readmitted to Beaumont.
Mr O'Leary had a hip replacement at the hospital following a fall almost a month previously. He was readmitted when the surgical wound became infected and died there 4½ weeks later on January 26th, 2005, Dublin City Coroner's Court heard yesterday.
A report from orthopaedic surgeon John Byrne at Beaumont stated that Mr O'Leary tested positive for MRSA when a wound swab was taken the day after he was readmitted.
He was treated for the infection and initially his condition improved. However in the coming days, blood cultures confirmed that MRSA septicaemia had set in and he became "very unwell" and "slowly and gradually he deteriorated", according to Mr Byrne's report. He suffered seizures before his death, the inquest heard.
A postmortem report by pathologist Prof Mary Leader found the immediate cause of death was pneumonia complicated by septicaemia. Coroner Dr Brian Farrell said the pathologist did not "specifically say" that the pneumonia was brought on by MRSA.
He recorded a verdict of death by misadventure. The inquest heard that Mr O'Leary had Alzheimer's disease and dementia.
Denis Mee of the TLC Centre told the court that Mr O'Leary's fall was "totally accidental" and "part of a problem when dealing with the elderly."
The inquest was the second heard this week at Dublin City Coroner's Court where MRSA was a factor in death at a Dublin hospital. On Monday, a consultant microbiologist at the Mater told an inquest that MRSA was "endemic" in every hospital.
Dr Farrell, along with the Cork city coroner Dr Myra Cullinane, have required that all deaths where MRSA may be attributable be reported to their offices.