Unseen World!

MONTREAL — Canadian soldiers are bringing home from dusty Afghanistan a powerful, drug-resistant superbug that health officials have been worrying about for several years.

Three Canadian soldiers who recently returned from Kandahar carrying so-called "Iraqibacter" are under quarantine at a civilian hospital in Quebec City.

Two civilian patients who came in close contact with the soldiers at Hopital de l’Enfant-Jesus have also been isolated for fear they may have contracted the superbug officially named Acinetobacter baumannii.

The hospital-acquired germ, commonly found in soil and water, strikes weakened immune systems, especially in those recovering from wounds.

It has been known to cause conditions such as pneumonia, meningitis as well as blood, urinary tract and wound infections.

Some people carry the bacteria on their skin without showing symptoms.

Two years ago, the Public Health Agency of Canada warned Canadian hospitals that outbreaks could happen after wounded soldiers returned home from Afghanistan either sickened by the strain, or simply carrying it in their system.

The department did not immediately answer requests for an interview on the subject Thursday.

A 2007 report in the publication Wound Care Canada said incidences of the strain have increased in U.S. military hospitals.

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