A Father of two has died in Hull Royal Infirmary after being struck by the latest super-bug.

Leslie Pittock, 56, died after falling victim to Clostridium difficile (C difficile) while being treated for pneumonia at the hospital.

His widow says she will never know if her husband would have survived had he not caught the bug.

Mr Pittock was admitted to HRI last month with breathing problems. Just two weeks later he fell unconscious. He died on June 6.

Today, his widow Judy, 48, of Rawcliffe Grove, West Hull, said she was never told her husband had the bug.

She only found out the day after he died when it was named as a secondary cause of death, after pneumonia and myotonic dystrophy, on his death certificate.

She said: "I will never know if my husband could have fought off the pneumonia and lived if it hadn't been for this bug."

Mr Pittock, a retired labourer, had appeared healthy until just a month ago.

He was sent to the hospital for tests by his GP after developing breathing difficulties. He was admitted on May 9.

During his stay he was found to have myotonic dystrophy, a progressive illness that causes muscle weakness and wasting.

Mrs Pittock said her husband was told progression of the illness would be slow and he would still have a long life ahead of him.

But, after being discharged on May 14, he was rushed back eight days later, again with breathing problems.

Mrs Pittock said: "He was struggling to breathe. The nurses said it was a chest infection and gave him antibiotics."

She visited her husband with their two sons, Richard, 25, and Vincent, 30, every day. She said they noticed a dramatic deterioration in his condition.

Five days after he was admitted he started to suffer with severe diarrhea.

He was then moved into isolation and on May 30 he fell unconscious, dying seven days later.

Mrs Pittock said she was angry nobody had told her about the bug.

She told the Mail: "The staff never mentioned it. They just said he had a chest infection."

Today, the trust's infection control manager, Maurice Madeo, said death as a result of the bug was very rare.

However, he acknowledged it could contribute to death in an already-ill patient in a few cases.

He said people on antibiotics were susceptible to the bug, as the drugs strip the body of "healthy" bacteria that fight infections.

He said: "If a patient acquires C difficile

and had some underlying condition, it's not going to do them any good, it will compromise their recovery.

"What happened to Mr Pittock was very unusual. We don't see it on a regular basis."

The trust would not say if there had been any other deaths related to the bug, as it is not yet required to provide figures to the Government.

However, Mr Madeo revealed there had been 151 cases in the first three months of this year.

This compares to 154 recorded cases in the first six months of 2004.

A spokesman for the trust said: "The trust would like to express its condolences to Mr Pittock's family at this sad time.

"Patients found to be affected by C difficile are closely monitored and the necessary infection control care plan is put in place."

The super-bug hit the national news after being revealed as a contributing factor in the deaths of 12 patients at Stoke Mandeville Hospital, Buckinghamshire, since 2003.

Ten patients who died in the past six months at Oldchurch Hospital in Romford, Essex, also contracted the bug.

Howden and Haltemprice MP David Davis called for doctors and nurses to be given power to close wards to stop bugs spreading.

He said: "This is a tragedy for this man's family and my sympathies go out to them."

East Yorkshire MP Greg Knight said: "It is a worrying problem that does appear to be getting worse. We see more and more cases of people who die in hospital from something they didn't have when they went in."

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From: Mick Pilling (Chairman) Save/Support Bridlington Hospital Campaign Group.

Our sincere sympathy and heart felt thoughts go out to the family of this unfortunate incident and prey it never happens to anyone else; cleaner hospitals are in the thoughts of most peoples minds today.  Lets hope our Government puts the necessary funding forward to fight this terrible Bug that as bestowed our brilliant hospitals.