Overview

Methicillin-resistant Staphylococcus aureus (MRSA) infection is caused by a kind of staph bacteria that's become immune to many of the antibiotics wont to treat ordinary staph infections.

Most MRSA infections occur in people who've been in hospitals or other health care settings, like nursing homes and dialysis centers. When it occurs in these settings, it's referred to as health care-associated MRSA (HA-MRSA). HA-MRSA infections typically are associated with invasive procedures or devices, such as surgeries, intravenous tubing or artificial joints.

Another sort of MRSA infection has occurred within the wider community — among healthy people. This form, community-associated MRSA (CA-MRSA), often begins as a painful skin boil. It's spread by skin-to-skin contact. At-risk populations include groups like high school wrestlers, child care workers and other people who sleep in crowded conditions.

Symptoms

Staph skin infections, including MRSA, generally start as swollen, painful red bumps which may resemble pimples or spider bites. The affected area might be:

Ø  Warm to the touch

Ø  Full of pus or other drainage

Ø  Accompanied by a fever

These can quickly become deep, painful abscesses that need surgical draining. Sometimes the bacteria remain confined to the skin. But they will also burrow deep into the body, causing potentially life-threatening infections in bones, joints, surgical wounds, the bloodstream, heart valves and lungs.

When to see a doctor

Keep an eye fixed on minor skin problems — pimples, insect bites, cuts and scrapes — especially in children. If wounds appear infected or are amid a fever, see your doctor.

Causes

Different sorts of Staphylococcus aureus bacteria, commonly called "staph," exist. Staph bacteria are normally found on the skin or within the nose of about one-third of the population. The bacteria are generally harmless unless they enter the body through a cut or other wound, and even then they typically cause only minor skin problems in healthy people.

According to the Centers for Disease Control and Prevention, around 2 percent of the population chronically carries the sort of staph bacteria referred to as MRSA.

Antibiotic resistance

MRSA is that the results of decades of often unnecessary antibiotic use. For years, antibiotics are prescribed for colds, flu and other viral infections that do not answer these drugs. Even when antibiotics are used appropriately, they contribute to the increase of drug-resistant bacteria because they do not destroy every germ they aim . Bacteria survive an evolutionary means , so germs that survive treatment with one antibiotic soon learn to resist others.

Complications

MRSA infections can resist the consequences of the many common antibiotics, in order that they are harder to treat. This can allow the infections to spread and sometimes become life-threatening.
MRSA infections may affect you’re:

Ø  Bloodstream

Ø  Lungs

Ø  Heart

Ø  Bones

Ø  Joints

Prevention

Preventing HA-MRSA

In the hospital, people who are infected or colonized with MRSA often are placed in contact precautions as a measure to prevent the spread of MRSA. Visitors and health care workers caring for people in isolation could also be required to wear protective garments and must follow strict hand hygiene procedures. Contaminated surfaces and laundry items should be properly disinfected.

Preventing CA-MRSA

• Wash your hands - Careful hand washing remains your best defense against germs. Scrub hands briskly for a minimum of 15 seconds, then dry them with a disposable towel and use another towel to show off the tap . Carry alittle bottle of hand sanitizer containing a minimum of 62 percent alcohol for times once you do not have access to soap and water.

• Keep wounds covered - Keep cuts and abrasions clean and covered with sterile, dry bandages until they heal. The pus from infected sores may contain MRSA, and keeping wounds covered will help prevent the bacteria from spreading.

• Keep personal items personal - Avoid sharing personal items like towels, sheets, razors, clothing and athletic equipment. MRSA spreads on contaminated objects also as through direct contact.

• Shower after athletic games or practices - Shower immediately after each game or practice. Use soap and water. Don't share towels.

• Sanitize linens - If you have a cut or sore, wash towels and bed linens in a washing machine set to the hottest water setting (with added bleach, if possible) and dry them in a hot dryer. Wash gym and athletic clothes after each wearing.

• Don't inject illicit drugs - Intravenous drug users are in danger of the many sorts of dangerous infections, including MRSA, human immunodeficiency virus (HIV) and hepatitis C.

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