<p>April 17, 2015 -- Imagine being sick in the hospital with a <ahref="http://www.webmd.com/a-to-z-guides/bacterial-and-viral-infections"onclick="return sl(this,'','embd-lnk');">bacterial infection</a> and doctors can't stop it from spreading. This so-called "superbug" scenario is not science fiction. It's an urgent, worldwide worry that is prompting swift action.</p>
<pxmlns:xalan="http://xml.apache.org/xalan">Every year, about 2 million people get sick from a superbug, according to the CDC. About 23,000 die. Earlier this year, an outbreak of CRE (carbapenem-resistant enterobacteriaceae) linked to contaminated medical tools sickened 11 people at two Los-Angeles area hospitals. Two people died, and more than 200 others may have been exposed.</p>
<p>The White House recently released a <aonclick="return sl(this,'','embd-lnk');"href="http://www.webmd.com/click?url=https://www.whitehouse.gov/sites/default/files/docs/national_action_plan_for_combating_antibotic-resistant_bacteria.pdf">comprehensive plan</a> outlining steps to combat drug-resistant bacteria. The plan identifies three "urgent" and several "serious" threats. We asked infectious disease experts to explain what some of them are and when to worry.</p>
<p>It's a term coined by the media to describe bacteria that cannot be killed using multiple <ahref="http://www.webmd.com/cold-and-flu/rm-quiz-antibiotics-myths-facts"onclick="return sl(this,'','embd-lnk');">antibiotics</a>. "It resonates because it's scary," says Stephen Calderwood, MD, president of the Infectious Diseases Society of America. "But in fairness, there is no real definition."</p>
<p>Instead, doctors often use phrases like "multidrug-resistant bacteria." That's because a superbug isn't necessarily resistant to all antibiotics. It refers to bacteria that can't be treated using two or more, says Brian K. Coombes, PhD, of McMaster University in Ontario.</p>