MRSA Information
An Overview of MRSA
Like many people you may have heard of methicillin resistant staphylococcus aureus or MRSA in media reports of the past couple of years. With that noted, you may not really understand the true nature of MRSA. Through this article you are provided an informational overview of MRSA.
MRSA actually has become a major medical and health care concern over the course of the past few years. Indeed, an increasing number of individuals are finding themselves suffering from a MRSA infection.
From a technical standpoint, MRSA is form of the staphylococcus aureus bacterium. However, unlike the “basic” staphylococcus aureua bacterium, MRSA is a significantly antibiotic resistent form of that bacterium. The alarming reality is that MRSA fails to respond to a number of different antibiotics. For example, MRSA fails to respond to commonly used antibiotics including:
l methicillin
l dicloxacillin
l nafcillin
l oxacillin
In most cases there are effective treatments for MRSA beyond these commonly utilized antibiotics. However, these infections are hard to combat and there are instances in which patients suffering from MRSA have died as a result of their infections.
While it is possible for a person to become infected with the MRSA bacterium anywhere, the reality is that at this point in time it has become a particularly troublesome problem in hospitals and medical centers. An increasing number of patients are ending up facing MRSA infections arising out of their hospitalizations. Patients that particularly are susceptible to hospital associated MRSA infections include:
l patients dealing with open wounds or sores
l patients who are utilizing invasive medical devices
l patients with weakened immune systems
In examining the transmission of MRSA in hospital settings studies have suggested hospital staff members many times are the agents of this transmission. Obviously, hospital staff members end up having to deal with a significant number of patients in what really amounts to a compressed amount of time. If these staff members fail to follow sanitary protocols and procedures to the letter (which can happen in the day to day rush of dealing with patient needs) MRSA can fairly easily be spread from one patient to another.
Finally, when it comes to MRSA infections in hospitals, visitors to a person who is afflicted with this type of infection are called upon to wear gowns, masks and gloves during their visitations. These precautions not only protect the visitors but it prevents further spreading of MRSA throughout the hospital. For example, in the absence of the precautions, MRSA can easily spread to other public areas of a hospital or medical center, including elevators, cafeterias and restrooms.
MRSA is a resistant variation of the common bacterium Staphylococcus aureus. It has evolved an ability to survive treatment with beta-lactamase resistant beta-lactam antibiotics, including methicillin, dicloxacillin, nafcillin, and oxacillin. MRSA is especially troublesome in hospital-associated (nosocomial) infections. In hospitals, patients with open wounds, invasive devices, and weakened immune systems are at greater risk for infection than the general public. Hospital staff who do not follow proper sanitary procedures may transfer bacteria from patient to patient. Visitors to patients with MRSA infections or MRSA colonization are advised to follow hospital isolation protocol by using the provided gloves, gowns, and masks if indicated. Visitors who do not follow such protocols are capable of spreading the bacteria to cafeterias, bathrooms, and elevators.