An NHS hospital in East Sussex is among the worst in England and Wales for MRSA-related deaths.

The Conquest Hospital in St Leonards came joint ninth in the first MRSA league table with nine deaths in 2002. The figure represented 0.7 per cent of all deaths.

Top of the league was the Derriford Hospital in Plymouth with 22 reported deaths.

The only other Sussex hospital to appear in the list of 50 trusts with at least five MRSA-related deaths was Brighton's Royal Sussex County Hospital, with a total of six in 2002.

The total of MRSA-related deaths in the 1,014 hospitals and nursing homes consulted by the Office of National Statistics for the study was 721.

MRSA, or methicillin resistant staphylococcus aureus, is a common bug but is dangerous because it enters the bloodstream through open wounds and some strains are resistant to almost all known antibiotics.

Managers at the Conquest insist they have rigorous cleaning control procedures in place and say up-to-date figures show they are now doing better than the national average.

The East Sussex Hospitals NHS Trust, which runs the Conquest and the Eastbourne District General Hospital, said it was unusual for MRSA to be the sole cause of death.

Dr Paul Wright, consultant microbiologist at the Conquest, said: "These figures are not based on information supplied by the hospital but appear to be based on data from death certificates. Clinically, it is very difficult to determine what contribution MRSA made to a patient's death even if it appears on a death certificate.

"It is unusual for MRSA to be the sole cause of death. However, it often contributes to a patient's death.

"The trust, along with all other acute hospital trusts, has to submit MRSA data to the Department of Health. These figures show the trust is better than the national average with a figure of 0.15 MRSA infections per 1,000 bed days compared with a national average of 0.18 in 2003/04.

"The trust takes the issue of hospital hygiene and cleanliness seriously."

The ONC figures come days after Health Secretary John Reid signalled a fresh drive to combat the infection.

The British Cleaning Council (BCC) claims lax visiting rules and patients with too much "clutter" are turning hospitals into breeding grounds for the bacteria because cleaners cannot do their job properly.

Hospital-acquired infections are estimated to cost the NHS about £1 billion a year and may kill as many as 5,000 patients annually.

East Sussex Hospitals NHS Trust received a one-star rating for its performance this month, down from two, with officials blaming poor financial management. However, it passed cleanliness tests after being visited unannounced by a national team.