Scientists recently discovered a superbug that is resistant to antibiotics. The E. coli ST 131 is said to be a potential pandemic that could kill more people than all cancers combined. New research suggests that it can also hinder the treatment of a common type of kidney disease.

Pyelonephritis is a kidney infection caused by the E. coli bacteria, which can usually start as a urinary tract infection. According to research, half of the people infected with the bug require hospitalization or it can lead to sepsis and death.

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In a study conducted by the University of California, Los Angeles (UCLA), almost 12 percent of infected patients were hit with a strain of bacteria that is resistant to fluoroquinolone, a standardntibiotic used to treat the disease.

The study dubbed the resistant strain of bacteria as the "Extended-spectrum beta-lactamases (ESBL)."  It is found to contain enzymes that destroyed the antibiotics. The enzymes were first discovered in the year 1979, but until now, scientists could not find sufficient information to develop options for treating the ESBL.

Three of every four people infected with the virus are treated with an antibiotic that is reported to be ineffective against the ESBL. Studies also suggest that there are no traditional risk factors for antibiotic resistance.

According to the Huffington Post, thousands of deaths caused by the ESBL have been left uncounted because federal and state agencies have been doing a poor job in tracking the data. However, scientists are now gearing towards doing research on the specific strain because it is becoming life-threatening.

David Telan, a professor from the UCLA, said that the strain poses a new threat.  He said that the emergence of the strain "greatly complicates treatment of infection."