The antibiotic-resistant killer has shown “significant diffusion in the northwestern area of Tuscany” since November 2018, infecting at least 75 people, local health authority ARS said.
It’s believed the bacterial disease has killed at least 31 people in 17 hospitals since the outbreak.
More than 31 cases were reported in Pisa, home to the iconic leaning tower.
The New Delhi superbug sparked global fear when it was found in the Indian capital in 2010 and showed resistance even to carbapenems, a group of antibiotics often reserved as a last line of defence.
“The ability to resist antibiotics makes these bacteria dangerous, especially in vulnerable patients, already affected by serious pathologies or immunosuppressed,” Tuscany’s health authority said.
As a result, hospitals in the region have “stepped up procedures for the prevention and control of infections in health facilities”.
