MRSA - What are the micro organism that cause it?


Question:
Where are they carried on/in the body?
How they are transferred to infect?
Who is most 'at Risk'?
Any sources of info...

Answers:
This is pretty complicated. It stands for Methicillin-resistant Staphylococcus aureus and is pretty hard to treat.
MRSA is spread by contact. So you could get MRSA by touching another person who has it on the skin. Or you could get it by touching objects that have the bacteria on them. MRSA is carried, or "colonized," by about 1% of the population (they carry it without knowing it), although most of them aren't "infected".

Garden-variety staph are common bacteria that can live on our bodies. Plenty of healthy people carry staph without being infected by it. In fact, 25-30% of us have staph bacteria in our noses.

But staph can be a problem if it manages to get into the body, often through a cut. Once there, it can cause an infection. Staph is one of the most common causes of skin infections in the U.S. Usually, these are minor and don't need special treatment. Less often, staph can cause serious problems like infected wounds or pneumonia.

Staph can usually be treated with antibiotics. But over the decades, some strains of staph -- like MRSA -- have become resistant to antibiotics that once destroyed it. MRSA was first discovered in 1961. It's now immune to methicillin, amoxicillin, penicillin, oxacillin, and many other antibiotics.

Isolation is essential, to prevent spreading it. other kinds of antibiotics still work. Bactrim and Vancocin (vancomycin) are often the first drugs used. Other options are Cleocin, Levaquin, Cubicin, Targocid, Zyvox, and Synercid. Some of these antibiotics may need to be given intravenously. There is also emerging antibiotic resistance being seen with some of these medications as well.

Antibiotics aren't always necessary. If you have a skin boil, your doctor may just make an incision and drain it.

If you are prescribed antibiotics, follow your health care provider's instructions precisely. Never stop taking your medicine, even if you're feeling better. If you don't take all of your medicine, some of the strongest staph bacteria may survive. These survivors then have the potential to become resistant to the antibiotic. They also could reinfect you or infect someone else.

Certainly people who are immunosuppressed are more at risk. But we are all at risk.
Methycillin Resistant Staphylococcus Aureus, mostly hospital acquired, at risk are seriuosly ill people, treatable but dealy if not treated appropriately, good luck


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