MRSA Cures

Methicillin-resistant Staphylococcus Aureus, or MRSA as it is more commonly known, is a serious and potentially dangerous strain of staph germ. MRSA is treatable, though it is resistant to the effects of the antibiotics normally used cure staph infections.

Symptoms

• MRSA usually begins as a skin infection. A person with MRSA may notice small red bumps that resemble insect bites on the surface of the skin. These small bumps will eventually develop into abscesses, or boils. An abscess is is a build-up of pus underneath the skin, and it appears red and swollen. The infection can spread deep into the tissue and may be very painful. An infected abscess can also be a symptom of a non-MRSA staph infection, and testing must be done to determine exactly which type of bacteria is causing the infection.

Diagnosis

• The procedure for diagnosing MRSA is also a step in treating the infection. A doctor will lance the abscess and drain the pus. This helps to clean out much of the bacteria, and also enables the doctor to take a sample. The sample taken from the wound will be analyzed, and the patient will typically get the test results back in one to three days. In the meantime, the doctor will clean and bandage the area. If the abscess was large, it may be necessary for the doctor to pack the wound with gauze to help prevent another flare-up. If so, the doctor or nurse will provide instructions for follow-up care.

Treatment

• Sometimes a staph or MRSA infection will not require antibiotics. If the infection is superficial, and if it has not started spreading into deeper tissue, then it may be cured when drained. Typically though, the doctor will prescribe an antibiotic for treating a normal staph infection during the initial visit. If the testing shows that the infection is not MRSA, this antibiotic will usually be effective. If, however, the testing for MRSA is positive, a stronger antibiotic is necessary. The antibiotics commonly used to treat MRSA are vancomycin and teicoplanin, which are administered either through an IV or by injection. The antibiotics, combined with the draining and cleaning of the abscess, should effectively cure the MRSA infection.

Warning

• If an MRSA infection is left untreated, it is potentially fatal. MRSA begins as a skin infection, but it can permeate deeper tissue. If the infection enters the bloodstream, it can infect organs, joints and other areas of the body. Watch for signs of a spreading infection, such as fever or red lines in the skin leading away from the abscess. If these symptoms occur, it is necessary to seek medical attention immediately. Also, since the treatment of MRSA usually includes strong medications, such as the more powerful antibiotics and possibly painkillers for use after the lancing, it is important to take the medications exactly as directed. For example, make sure to always eat before taking the medicine if the instructions warn against taking it on an empty stomach. Improperly taking these or any other medications can cause adverse reactions.

Theories/Speculation

• The MRSA bacteria that causes so many problems today developed after less virulent versions of staph built up immunity to antibiotics. Many doctors and medical professionals who study the causes of antibiotic-resistant bacteria, such as MRSA, speculate that these resistant strains have developed because of our own medical attitudes. For example, officials at the Mayo Clinic have found that "MRSA is the result of decades of excessive and unnecessary antibiotic use."

  Bacteria mutate quickly, and while antibiotics kill most bacteria in an infection, some specimens survive and pass on their resistant genes. Eventually, strains of bacteria become resistant to the antibiotics commonly used to treat them. This is a major concern, because medical researchers cannot develop new medicines quickly enough to combat mutations in strains of germs. For these reasons, it is important to seek medication only for conditions that require it and that will benefit from it. In the past, people have been prescribed antibiotics for the common cold, when such medication is not effective. A change in attitude toward medicine is required to help prevent new and dangerous strains of medicine-resistant infections from forming. Doctors with the Mayo Clinic recommend letting minor infections, like the cold, clear on their own without prescriptions.