MRSA Staph Infection

[louanne93]

Not to derail the thread but athlete's foot, jock itch and ringworm are essentially the same fungus - if you have this fungus on one part of your body it's quite possible to spread it to another part of your body by re-using a towel that has already come into contact with the infected area.

 

You are right and it has also been out of the hospital for some time now (a few years that I know of). There are two kinds... one is HA MRSA (hospital based) and CA MRSA (community based). They are on wrestling mats and in locker rooms. Scrub...scrub...scrub...with Dial soap and always use hand sanitizers. This is much more popular than people know, and has been outside the hospital for a lot longer than people know.

[cleob]

I caught an infection from a hot tub at a camp ground and resort some years back. Yes I know going in a hot tub at a campground was especially stupid. I would look like I was breaking out in hives and my skin would get red and blotchy. It would come and go but this went on for at least five weeks. They treated it with antibiotics and prendisone (not sure of the spelling). Needless to say I haven't used a public hot tub since!

[cruisinisforme]

I have a friend who got an infection from a hot tub also. Nope I never go in them on the cruise ships, I have a nice clean one in my backyard that I use year round...no need to go in on the ship

[gill_boo]

Hey folks, so I am in healthcare and deal with MRSA/VRE/C. Diff now almost on a regular basis. Anytime we have a patient that has it we have to confirm where the patient is infected. These viruses can be in 4 transmissible locations. Nasal, Respiratory, Rectal, and wound based. For the rectal and wound based, normally we would glove up and that is usually fine. For nasal and respiratory we glove, mask and gown. They do say that most healthcare workers at some point will contract these viruses and never know. These viruses usually give the elderly and very young problems. Its like any other illness, if you are a strong healthy individual the odds of this virus causing you problems is very slim. As for the whole idea that people are just randomly catching this, I bet ya if they could track back a railing, at some point its been touched by someone who has had contact with someone who has contracted it from a hospital setting.

[Tranquil Waters]

Hey folks, so I am in healthcare and deal with MRSA/VRE/C. Diff now almost on a regular basis. Anytime we have a patient that has it we have to confirm where the patient is infected. These viruses can be in 4 transmissible locations. Nasal, Respiratory, Rectal, and wound based. For the rectal and wound based, normally we would glove up and that is usually fine. For nasal and respiratory we glove, mask and gown. They do say that most healthcare workers at some point will contract these viruses and never know. These viruses usually give the elderly and very young problems. Its like any other illness, if you are a strong healthy individual the odds of this virus causing you problems is very slim. As for the whole idea that people are just randomly catching this, I bet ya if they could track back a railing, at some point its been touched by someone who has had contact with someone who has contracted it from a hospital setting.

 

Actually they aren't viruses at all. They are bacterias. :)

[Cruising89143]

MRSA isn't new. The news have just latched onto the recent cases and gone crazy. Must be a slow news week. :rolleyes:

 

My dad broke his foot 4 years ago. Went to the hospital, had surgery, contracted MRSA and his leg was amputated one month later when it ate his bone away. :eek:

 

My daughter's preschool teacher had a baby, she went to visit her great grandmother in a nursing home, the mom changed her diaper, the baby contracted MRSA through a diaper rash, then the mom got it from the daughter. This was 2 years ago, the "baby" is now in preschool with MY baby.

 

My uncle had a sore on his feet (from diabetes) he contracted MRSA, died from it when it infected his blood. That was 3 years ago.

 

MRSA is NOT new. Many people carry MRSA but they aren't sick and they don't know it. The only way to know if you have MRSA is to do a culture (from the nose).

 

I don't get into hottubs anyway. But catching MRSA from a hottub is the least of my worries. :rolleyes:

 

 

This is some bad stuff. My father went into the hospital and while there contracted MRSA. He did not come out of the hospital.

[jerseygirl3]

I'm a nurse in a pediatric practice and we see, on average, 3 cases of MRSA a week. The ones we see are typically abscesses located on various areas of the body. The scary thing is that these are occurring in otherwise very healthy children. Unfortunately, these superbugs are the results of patients harrassing doctors to give antibiotics when they weren't necessary. If I had a dime for every patient that asks that their child be given an antibiotic when they have a simple common cold, I'd be a rich (retired) person by now.

[Tranquil Waters]

This is some bad stuff. My father went into the hospital and while there contracted MRSA. He did not come out of the hospital.

 

Agreed. I think that those that are dismissive have probably not seen its effects..... it can be very ugly indeed.

[threeofus]

And watch those manicures and pedicures.

[Laurie12820]

You are right and it has also been out of the hospital for some time now (a few years that I know of). There are two kinds... one is HA MRSA (hospital based) and CA MRSA (community based). They are on wrestling mats and in locker rooms. Scrub...scrub...scrub...with Dial soap and always use hand sanitizers. This is much more popular than people know, and has been outside the hospital for a lot longer than people know.

 

That's very true. There are 8 suspected cases of MRSA in our local highschool. It all started with sharing football equipment and it is now spreading to middle school students who share the busses with the highschool children. People, if you have an open and oozing wound, out of respect for the rest of us, cover it up! MRSA can be prevented if people cared for their wounds properly and washed their hands more frequently.

[cruzincurt]

Salt and pepper shakers, ketchup bottles, etc...bad news. Local University study found lots of environmental growth on those items.

 

You get people sneezing, those that don't wash their hands, etc. Get the popcorn, here comes the "You can't live in a germ free world. No use trying."

[aimmike&meg]

My DH and I are both Paramedics he with 15 yrs experience and myself with 10 and so many things you all have said are so right!

 

You are right and it has also been out of the hospital for some time now (a few years that I know of). There are two kinds... one is HA MRSA (hospital based) and CA MRSA (community based). They are on wrestling mats and in locker rooms. Scrub...scrub...scrub...with Dial soap and always use hand sanitizers. This is much more popular than people know, and has been outside the hospital for a lot longer than people know.

 

It has been out of the hospital for a long time....it just hit the news and the media ran with it just like with almost anything else. Scare tactics really is all it is.

 

 

Hey folks, so I am in healthcare and deal with MRSA/VRE/C. Diff now almost on a regular basis. Anytime we have a patient that has it we have to confirm where the patient is infected. These viruses can be in 4 transmissible locations. Nasal, Respiratory, Rectal, and wound based. For the rectal and wound based, normally we would glove up and that is usually fine. For nasal and respiratory we glove, mask and gown. They do say that most healthcare workers at some point will contract these viruses and never know. These viruses usually give the elderly and very young problems. Its like any other illness, if you are a strong healthy individual the odds of this virus causing you problems is very slim. As for the whole idea that people are just randomly catching this, I bet ya if they could track back a railing, at some point its been touched by someone who has had contact with someone who has contracted it from a hospital setting.

 

Wash, wash, wash, wash... but you are so right! Do the right thing and take care of yourself, eat right, stay clean and wash,wash, wash!!!!

 

I'm a nurse in a pediatric practice and we see, on average, 3 cases of MRSA a week. The ones we see are typically abscesses located on various areas of the body. The scary thing is that these are occurring in otherwise very healthy children. Unfortunately, these superbugs are the results of patients harrassing doctors to give antibiotics when they weren't necessary. If I had a dime for every patient that asks that their child be given an antibiotic when they have a simple common cold, I'd be a rich (retired) person by now.

 

You are so right!!!!!!! We as a society have done this to ourselves we have developed these "super bugs" by demanding antibiotics when they were not warranted and for those of us and we are all guilty of this who hasn't had a 1/2 used bottle of antibiotics lying around in their medicine cabinet? You are diagnosed with an infection and you take the antibiotic until you begin to feel better then you stop even though you still have medicine left, so then that bug morphs into something else and becomes antibiotic resistance the R in MRSA is for resistant.....antibiotics just can't fight it.

[rtrtx2]

My son actually came home from school today with a letter because a child in the primary school has been diagnosed with MRSA. As soon as I read it, I recalled this thread.

[ruskatab]

I think it is a good thing that the staph problems have been in the media. Alot of people have never heard of MRSA and it might save someones leg or their life. Some people might go to the doctor now instead of waiting and it getting worse. It might be old but there are more cases being reported. I would rather hear about staph in the news than that nut case Britney Spears.

[murphysmum]

Hello...

 

I don't consider myself paranoid about germs. I don't use the ship hot tubs because I've got one at home and it's not particularly a novelty to use one that's been used by so many people, especially young children.

 

What does bother me more is the apparently unconcern about risk of foot infections (staph, fungus, ringworm, etc.) by security systems at the airport. With everyone taking off their shoes, walking on the bare floor, (often barefoot) there is a risk of acquiring various types of infections.

 

I've started wearing a second old pair of socks and thowing them away after passing security.

 

Overly careful, possibly...but it makes me feel safer...

 

murphysmum;)

[BopRN]

I am a pediatric nurse in a surgical setting. We are now doing surgery on 2-3 kids per DAY compared to 1/month a year ago! All ages of normal healthy kids...from wrestlers to football players to infants with abscesses in their diaper areas. Yes MRSA iS a BACTERIA, not a virus! It can live on inanimate objects for months...so it doesn't matter if you scrub, scrub, scrub all the walls in schools, etc....it can be on the next thing you touch like a grocery cart or doorknob.

 

Our operating rooms are meticulously scrubbed every day but in the last year we started seeing occasional post-op MRSA infections for no reason in healthy kids......that's when they realized it was out in the community and these kids were coming in with it already in their bodies and surgery stresses the body allowing the MRSA to rear it's ugly head. Most cases are treated successfuly with Vancomycin. Our hospital has never lost a patient to MRSA thankfully. You can be a carrier and not know you have it.

[paggerscorvette]

I had not heard of MRSA until 2 weeks ago when my son in law was put in the hospital with MRSA. Now our town has several cases, 1 at the High School. This is a very serious problem.

 

This would make me think twice about the hot tubs. On second thought NOPE I'll use mine at home. Happy Crusin' to all

[Ocean Boy]

Hey folks, so I am in healthcare and deal with MRSA/VRE/C. Diff now almost on a regular basis. Anytime we have a patient that has it we have to confirm where the patient is infected. These viruses can be in 4 transmissible locations. Nasal, Respiratory, Rectal, and wound based. For the rectal and wound based, normally we would glove up and that is usually fine. For nasal and respiratory we glove, mask and gown. They do say that most healthcare workers at some point will contract these viruses and never know. These viruses usually give the elderly and very young problems. Its like any other illness, if you are a strong healthy individual the odds of this virus causing you problems is very slim. As for the whole idea that people are just randomly catching this, I bet ya if they could track back a railing, at some point its been touched by someone who has had contact with someone who has contracted it from a hospital setting.

 

I find it a bit hard to believe that someone is in health care and doesn't know if he/she is dealing with viruses or bacteria or maybe doesn't know the difference between the two.

[Ocean Boy]

Double post

[louanne93]

That's very true. There are 8 suspected cases of MRSA in our local highschool. It all started with sharing football equipment and it is now spreading to middle school students who share the busses with the highschool children. People, if you have an open and oozing wound, out of respect for the rest of us, cover it up! MRSA can be prevented if people cared for their wounds properly and washed their hands more frequently.

 

That is true. Parents aren't protecting thier own kids as well as other kids. Our son wears full body armour when he wrestles-he gets mad at us-but we make him do it. He douses himself when he gets on the mat and douses himself when he gets off. You can wear this stuff called nu-skin. Our coach buys CASES of this stuff and our team is VERY careful about bleaching the mats and all the equiptment.

 

Our son -who is 17- was on antibiotics for the first 4 years of his life (he had kidney reflux and they thought he would out grow it). I don't know if this has anything to do with the reason he got MRSA (too many antibiotics when he was little??), but he was never on antibiotics after he had surgery, he never even got sick again...not even a cold or flu. He shaved his head when he was 15 (it was a wrestling thing) and when he did that he came home with MRSA:eek: . There is a formula (you can ask your dr for the handout). It is hibiclens scrub (for 12 days) and bactroban in the nostrals (for 5 days) and he was tested again and did NOT have MRSA. Since then we ALL protect ourselves.

 

People are embarrassed to say that they or thier kid(s) have it and they don't tell people. They just go on not saying anything. I know how it feels when you think people are going to treat you different. It is VERY hard but you need to tell. So others can protect themselves (which they should be doing anyways).

[cruise_lover]

Hot Tub? NO! Long relaxing hot bubble baths with my favorite scented candle and a glass of wine? YES YES YES!

[Barb C]

I've wondered about the hot tubs on cruise ships too. (and in hotels and our favorite vacation house in OBX). Not sure when or how they clean them.....DH and I don't use the pools after about noon or so either, too many people and the water starts looking a little murky.....

 

MHO,

:)

[nrdsb4]

I'm a nurse in a pediatric practice and we see, on average, 3 cases of MRSA a week. The ones we see are typically abscesses located on various areas of the body. The scary thing is that these are occurring in otherwise very healthy children. Unfortunately, these superbugs are the results of patients harrassing doctors to give antibiotics when they weren't necessary. If I had a dime for every patient that asks that their child be given an antibiotic when they have a simple common cold, I'd be a rich (retired) person by now.

 

That's so true, but at least those patients were coming from a place of ignorance. The docs knew better and still caved into pressure.

 

I have a friend who used to demand antibiotics for her kids every single damn time they had a cold or allergy symptoms. Her doc gave them to her every time she asked, I suspect to just get her off his back. Shame on him and other doctors like him!

[Let'sGo!]

After nearly 20 years in the TV news business, I love reading the remarks about only the "bad" news that is reported. But honestly, if you see the research I have seen you would understand why news organizations choose the news they do. I mean think about it - there are entire networks dedicated to "entertaining" you with tragic health stories. I watched an entire hour show the other night about a woman who had a brain malformity. I wanted to go to sleep, but I had to see how it ended! Yes, there is the argument that news is news, and TV entertainment is just that. But TV news is a business and like any business it has to show a profit. The way they do that is with ratings.

 

Okay - enought about my defense of the news biz... which, by the way, I am no longer a part of :D .

 

Meanwhile, back at the thread...

 

When I was young and impressionable, I worked as a swimming pool manager at our city's country club. One of the courses I had to take as part of the job was a course in water chemistry. Let me tell you - I have not and will NOT ever get into a public hot tub. Think about the first thing most people do when they get into a hot tub... hunker down and get as close to the water jet as possible. And yes, those jets are strong enough to send any water impurities into your system.

[mprucha]

What is new is that it is beginning to show up outside of the hospital/healthcare setting. Your examples all go back to contact from a hospital/nursing home source. They are now seeing MRSA where there is no healthcare facility point of contact. That is the concerning part and why it has hit the news recently.

 

But, yes, I will agree a slow news week, hasn't hurt.....;)

 

Actually, you're wrong on this statement. It's true that they are latching on to the cases outside of healthcare but it's not true that it's just now showing up in areas outside of healthcare facilities. MRSA has been around for ages in and out of healthcare settings and is extremely easily passed between people especially if they aren't careful, if they have a weak immunity system or are currently sick with some type of infection or wound. You see it much more in health care settings because of the number of people in and out 24/7 year round. It's true that you can be "colonized" with MRSA and not actually be sick. In fact, if you tested anyone that works in healthcare or any other business where people are in close contact such as teachers that teach many years or other businesses where you are around many individuals, you would find many of them are colonized and they don't even know it. This has always been the case. The fact now is that the media has latched on to a couple of cases and would it sound like this is some new epidemic when in actuality, it's an old, serious infection that people just need to be better educated about.