# Mrsa



## shellrow (Feb 8, 2007)

My aunt recently died of heart failure caused by MRSA. She had previously been diagnosised and treated for MRSA in August. She was over weight, diabetic, had heart conditions, respiratory problems and was an avid smoker and went on sugar eating binges. When she was taken to the hospital via ambulance in August and checked into the ICU they discovered 5 infections through out her body. By the 2nd week her problems were irreversible. She was on life support and as a family we decided to end her suffering and take her off of life support.

Now I have recently discovered a small pimple type bump on my side ( which is very unusual) that was directly under my bra seam. It was rubbed and the pimple broke. I cleaned it with peroxide and put neosporian on it. Today it is a huge lump and I am scared out of my mind. I am going to the doctor tomorrow, I could not get in today. 

I am racking my brain about the whole situation. I am a clorox freak, I use it to clean all of the time. When visiting my aunt I was very very careful about washing my hands using the anti-bacterial hand wash they had in her room at the nurses station and on the ward before getting on the elevators. I wash my hands alot on a daily basis and now I am just freaked out as to how I got it. I am worried about possibly spreading it to my family. I know this sounds as if I am freaking out for nothing but I know of 3 people that have had this strain of infection. One died, one has had several toes taken off and the infection is constantly spreading (really hindering her life) and one person has had several of the cysts/boils and has managed to have the infection treated and has had no more out breaks. 

Anyone else ever dealt with this?


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## Wisconsin Ann (Feb 27, 2007)

no words of wisdom, but you're getting to the Dr. as soon as you can, so you should be taken care of okay. 

Was reading Mayo Clinic site about MRSA just now before posting, and one thing I thought appropriate for the immediate time:
Keep wounds covered. Keep cuts and abrasions clean and covered with sterile, dry bandages until they heal. The pus from infected sores often contains MRSA, and keeping wounds covered will help keep the bacteria from spreading

The site also said that the doc may treat by draining the site instead of immediately putting patient on antibiotic since this strain has developed BECAUSE of the over use of antibiotics and there are only a couple left that are effective.

you probably know all that already, but if you'd like the site:http://www.mayoclinic.com/health/mrsa/DS00735/DSECTION=5 

good luck tomorrow <hugs>


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## onthespot (Oct 7, 2007)

hope it's not MRSA, but one thing you could do that wouldn't hurt and could possibly help, is pack/dress the wound with granulated sugar, which a lot of bacteria can't stand full strength. It works by osmosis, and screws up the fluid balance in the bacteria and they can't function. It won't hurt the healthy flesh and it is right here, right now something you can do, for cheap.


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## shellrow (Feb 8, 2007)

No MRSA here! YAH!! :dance: The PA said it looked like some sort of insect bite with a highly allergic reaction. I was given KFLEX and tylenol. I woke up this morning with the hives and I am hoping it is not an allergic reaction to the KFLEX.


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## WayneR (Mar 26, 2007)

Shellrow,
Did the PA take a sample of the discharge and have it tested in order to confirm the diagnosis? Your opening & draining the site would change it's appearance and the conclusion reached. Considering the time of year and location of the injury, does an insect bite seem reasonable?

A diagnosis soley based on cursory visual examination, given your exposure-history, is risky.


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## Aeirios (May 31, 2007)

No slight intended towards the PA. But a PA is a PA and not a doc. In a situation such as this, saying it "looks like" ain't good enough. MRSA isn't something to mess around with. Would get some more definitive testing done, esp if you know you have been exposed to it a bunch.


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## Sherrynboo (Mar 19, 2005)

We lost my mom to MRSA two years ago. She had alzheimers and was confined to a wheelchair. She developed a bad rash on her neck due to no support for her head which caused her head to always lay back. Anyway it developed a boil right in the middle and caused her whole neck to be bright red. When she got to the hospital the nurses would change her bandage and I swear to you on a Bible, they would put the scissors back in their pockets and go on to the next patient! Now at that time, the culture had not come back but come on! These nurses have seen this before! No wonder it is spreading like wildfire! I am glad your problem is not mrsa.

Sherry in GA


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## Rita (May 13, 2002)

Sherry, that is soooo scary to think a nurse would do something like that. Our daughter died 5 yrs ago from MRSA complications to another problem she had. When we visited we had to have masks, gowns and gloves.


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## ajaxlucy (Jul 18, 2004)

shellrow said:


> No MRSA here! YAH!! :dance: The PA said it looked like some sort of insect bite with a highly allergic reaction. I was given KFLEX and tylenol. I woke up this morning with the hives and I am hoping it is not an allergic reaction to the KFLEX.


A fine red rash could well be an allergic reaction to Keflex. Did you call the PA to report it?


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## Sherrynboo (Mar 19, 2005)

Rita, I am so sorry you lost your daughter. We did report the nurses actions to the head honcho at the hospital plus my sister reported it to the CDC as well. I don't know if they have changed their protocol or not. I hope I never have to go there.......I stay as far away from doctors and hospitals as I possibly can.

Sherry in GA


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## Rita (May 13, 2002)

Sherry, I'm glad you both did report that nurse. If we all speak up when we see something wrong the hospitals might clean up their act. Thanks for the kind comment about the loss of our daughter.


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## SoINgirl (Aug 3, 2007)

My friend's daughter has be diagnosed with it. She had what they thought were boils at first in her bra area, so they kept coming back and they took her to the doctor and now she is on antibiotics and has to use some kind of a special soap. But it was several months before she went to the doctor, and my dad had it for about 2 years. Which with my dad nobody wanted to explain anything to us about it. So needless to say we have all probally been exposed to it. Cross our fingers that nothing becomes of it.


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## shellrow (Feb 8, 2007)

Ok folks just an update as to what is going on. When the place became so swollen on my side it did not ooze any liquid. It did have a small head but it did not ooze liquid and I did not mess with it. The only time it did any oozing was when the first initial pimple burst. After the pimple popped I cleaned it with peroxide and put neosporin on it with a small patch over it that gave it air but did not let clothing touch it. 

The trip to the dr's office resulted in the nurse touching it with bare hands and then touching everything else in the room as well. She also asked me why I did not put a warm compress on it and bring it to more of a head. (Well cuz I did not want to take any chances that it was MRSA and it might spread, DUH!!) (Take into account it was not oozing.) The PA did use gloves (thank goodness). They did not sample the area where the lump was. They did do a CBC and said, yes your white cells are elevated, there is an infection. 

I am not having any more problems from the KFLEX, I am unsure why I woke up with the itchy feeling during the night. There were no rashes just itchy places. Right now the swelling has gone down quite a bit. One small area is still a hard mass and is still red. I go back to the dr. tomorrow for a recheck. I will insist that they check the mass and have it analyzed. Thanks for everyone's replies.


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## WayneR (Mar 26, 2007)

Shellrow,

You should tell your DR of the "nurse" not observing proper precautions and potentially giving your problem to someone else, even though it's not your fault. In many offices these "nurses" are not really nurses(RN), have minimal training and function in the medical office at the doctor's disgression. Even invasive proceedures.

Visited someone in a hospital the other day. The number of rooms in isolation with universal precaution posters on the doors was alarming. These special patients are mixed in with the regular ones. These patients should be segregated from the regular ones, on a specific wing or floor, as a simple matter of infection management and control. 

Considered counting the number of these rooms on one floor, but common sense and the desire to minimise exposure prevailed, fortunately!

With such lax control, hospitals are little more than breeding grounds.

If your doctor refuses to verify diagnosis, get a 2nd opinion.


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## greenboy (Sep 5, 2005)

This is a very resistant bacteria. Hygine and wash the affected area is very important. Lysol is a great thing to have to clean and clean the area if is something not alive. If you have a person with the infection, Keflex my help but it doesnt clear compleatly the infection. Remember the bacteria is resistant the METICILLINE, and also this makes the bacteria resistant to Penicillin and KEflex is just a syntetic penicillin. Actually 15% of the times you are allergic to PCN you are also alergic to KEflex. Bactrim DS which is sulfa is number one against the bacteria, you take it three times a day at the begining and after a week you take it every 12 hrs. And PLEASE clean and increase hygine to a 200%


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## greenboy (Sep 5, 2005)

I dont know what happened but Iadded to my last message please read this one.



greenboy said:


> This is a very resistant bacteria. Hygine and wash the affected area is very important. Lysol is a great thing to have to clean and clean and to wash your hands but you can't use it in the infection itself. If you have a person with the infection, Keflex my help is a good antibiotic to use but it doesnt clear compleatly the infection. Remember the bacteria is resistant the METICILLINE so you cant use penicilline, this means the bacteria is resistant to Penicillin and Keflex is just a syntetic penicillin. Actually 15% of the times you are allergic to PCN you are also allergic to Keflex. Bactrim DS which is sulfa is a good antibiotic against the bacteria, you take it three times a day at the begining and after a week you take it every 12 hrs. and clean the area and change the dressing on daily basis And PLEASE clean and increase hygine to a 200% in everything. Now I just read the bacteria may attack your inmune system, so you have to be very careful, if you have animals in the house you may pass the bacteria to these animals hair or fur, so you may get infected again and again and this is not healthy they may no suffer for the bacteria infection but may infect other members of the family as well. Also you may check you Hemoglobin A1C this is an abnormal hemoglobin in diabetics and if you have this hemoglobine means you are a diabetic you may have high levels of blood sugar all the time and this helps the bacteria to stay in you blood longer and keep the infection on going.


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## WayneR (Mar 26, 2007)

Please advise :shrug:


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## harplade (Jul 14, 2005)

this sound similar to what I just had on my breast. It eventually cleared up with the doctor cutting out the source of infection (which was an old infected sweat gland) and bacitrim. There are lots of horror stories out there-hope yours works out as well as mine did.


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## greenboy (Sep 5, 2005)

If you have this infection or you think you have this infection for more than once you should try to see a doctor.
But step one is not to start antibiotics right away.
Step 1 is : hygine wash the area several times a day. if You work with sick people, children, senior citizen, or animals. You should wash your hands continuesly.
Step 2: you should be treated with antibiotics, which the choice number one is Bactrim. If you have a heavy infection they may add Rifampin (antibiotic), but if they do, Rifampin bring the concentration of Bactrim in you blood down so you have to take the Bactirm more often, Usually the bactrim DS is prescribed twice a day, with Rifampin ,you have to take it three times a day. Clyndamacin is another choice of antibiotic mainly for people with allergies to Bactrim or sulfa. Make sure if you have any intestinal problems to tell the doctor clyndamacin is tought with the intestines.
step 3. If you have this infection more than once in a period I would say of three to 6 months. You need to tell or remind the doctor because you should also get a antibacterial ointment and use it, in your nose/nares or nostrils, Bactrobam (mupirocin) ointment is the antibicterial of choice.
Remember MRSA is not an Institution infection anymore, now we see CA-MRSA or community acquired MRSA people from their home are havin this infection,. So hygine is very important and personal hygine is more important. Is like a new saying I heard often. "two showers a day keep MRSA away" . God bless....


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## Lannie (Jan 11, 2004)

There is new research in Ireland that indicates that Elecampane (a flower) is 100% effective at killing MRSA. It will never be big news in this country because you can't patent a flower, so the drug companies will make no money off of it. But it seems to work, so there you go.

http://biopsy.wordpress.com/2007/11/16/you-can-kiss-mrsa-goodbye/

http://archives.tcm.ie/irishexaminer/2007/11/16/story48105.asp

The Pulsatilla vulgaris mentioned in the second article is Pasque Flower.

~Lannie


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## susieM (Apr 23, 2006)

For some of these kinds of things, the Brits use good old Hydrogen Peroxide...
http://www.curevents.com/upload/showthread.php?t=85370


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## greenboy (Sep 5, 2005)

I work with a Mexican guy and he told me whenever he gets an infection he put hot peppers on it (chili) and that's all, I wonder if he is saying the truth.


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## WayneR (Mar 26, 2007)

Please advise. Concerned..


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## Karen (Apr 17, 2002)

You can get VERY severe burns from putting chilis on your skin. Some people have been known to get 2nd and 3rd degree burns (depending on what type of chili you use). Do NOT follow that advise.


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## Katrina26 (Nov 18, 2007)

Dial soap is being used local to combat MRSA in school outbreaks.

This bacteria can be life threatening if it spreads to the internal organs. Signs and symptoms that would require immediate medical attention are fever, sever headaches, shortness of breath or a rash over half of the body. To reduce the spreading of MRSA washing ones hands with Dial soap is suggested and wiping areas and equipment with a bleach and water solution

http://www.cumminghome.com/news3004...ses-reported-in-the-13-most-northern-di.shtml

Kat


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