At least four newborn babies are reported to have been infected by the bacterium at the hospital's neonatal ward for prematurely born infants, head of department Consultant Pia Sønderby Christensen told Ritzau.

20 patients at the hospital are currently undergoing tests to detect the presence of the bug, with a similar number of recently discharged patients also recalled.

The hospital is now testing newborn babies and parents that have been at the hospital since late February, along with staff, in an effort to track down the source of the bacteria.

“MRSA infections can be treated with antibiotics, so parents needn't be worried.

“It does not commonly give rise to illness, and the bacteria can be treated if symptoms exist,” Christensen said.

The consultant said she expected further infections to be uncovered.

“We currently do not have an overview of how many children are affected. But we are currently investigating this,” she said.

“We are isolating the infected children with their families. So we are separating the department between those with the bacteria and those who do not have it,” the doctor added.

Christensen also said that of the four children in which infection had been found, one had been treated for a skin infection and was now cured.

The remaining three children did not show any symptoms.

“But we expect to find more infected children, since that's often how it is with outbreaks like this. It passes easily between newborn babies,” she said.

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