Forty-eight children and teenagers in eastern Ireland developed drug-resistant staph skin infections after an outdoor gathering that featured three bouncy castles. Public health doctors now say close-contact play on the inflatables was the most plausible explanation, a route of spread they say had not been described before in the scientific literature.
The investigation, published Sept. 10 in the infectious disease journal Eurosurveillance, details an autumn 2025 outbreak of community-acquired methicillin-resistant Staphylococcus aureus, or MRSA. RTÉ and The Irish Times described it as the largest recorded outbreak of the superbug in Ireland.
