There is thought to be no sign of the bug in July either – meaning MRSA has been absent for more than 60 days.

Numbers of people contracting the Clostridium difficile infection (C.diff), the other hospital "superbug", were also down by nearly a third in June, compared to last year's levels, with 10 people in June compared to 27 people in the same month in 2007.

In June 2007, three people were found to have MRSA – methicillin-resistant staphylococcus aureus – and four patients were diagnosed with it in April last year. The 2007 rates overall were also the lowest for six years, according to statistics from the Healthcare Commission.

These figures have been released by East Lancashire Hospitals NHS Trust, which includes Burnley General and Royal Blackburn Hospital, at a meeting of the Trust board. Lynn Wissett, director of clinical care and governance for the Trust, said: "We are pleased our rates of healthcare-acquired infections remain relatively low for both Clostridium Difficile and MRSA.

"This, along with the fact that recently released Healthcare Commission figures show that since 2007 our MRSA rates are the lowest they have been for six years, indicates we are certainly proving successful in our bid prevent infection in our hospitals.

"However, despite recently having almost a two-month period where our hospitals were MRSA-free, even one case is a case too many and a stark reminder to staff, visitors and patients the importance of following our infection control guidance."

Earlier this year, a four-month intensive deep-cleaning programme was carried out at Burnley General to battle the superbugs and the risk of infection, as part of a £1.1m. scheme including the Royal Blackburn and Pendle and Rossendale hospitals.

Specialist cleaning staff was recruited in January to clean every surface in wards and other public areas of the hospital, including out-patient clinics, the Urgent Care Centre, diagnostic departments and the toilets.