An outbreak of hypervirulent, multidrug-resistant MRSA linked to bouncy castle use at a community gathering in Ireland has infected 48 children, according to a report published this week in the journal Eurosurveillance. The event, which took place in autumn 2025 and drew around 120 people, including roughly 60 children and teenagers, has been identified as the largest MRSA outbreak ever recorded in Ireland and the first anywhere to be traced to inflatable play equipment, raising fresh concerns about hygiene at such gatherings.

Of the 48 affected children, 33 were treated by their GP, 15 needed emergency care, and four were hospitalised, though all have since recovered. Genomic sequencing identified the culprit as a rare MRSA strain producing the Panton–Valentine leukocidin toxin, which caused rapid, aggressive skin infections—mostly on the legs—within days or even hours, far quicker than the usual incubation period. Investigators found that 47 of the 48 cases had used the bouncy castles, often for many hours in crowded, rough-and-tumble conditions made worse by warm, humid, rainy weather, likely allowing the bacteria to spread through minor skin abrasions.