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Posted 10/17/2007 9:55 PM (GMT 0)
I heard on the news today there is this strain of bacteria that is resistant to antibiotics and is killing people in hospitals.  Has anyone heard about this super bug? I guess it's especially dangerous to immune suppressed patients.  Just what I need to hear on the news!
Posted 10/17/2007 10:07 PM (GMT 0)
Yes, I heard about it on the news. I guess there are 90,000 cases a year. We just always have to be cautious. Wash hands, don't share personal items..that kind of thing. There is always something out there that is trying to do some population control it seems.
Posted 10/17/2007 10:46 PM (GMT 0)
I heard about it on the blurb about what was on the today show today buut I was in the shower when the story was aired so I didnt hear the story and cannot find the link on their webpage.

I recall hearing it was a staph infection I thought maybe MRSA but I found a link that may be the topic not sure havent read it thru yet

http://www.msnbc.msn.com/id/16691062/

Posted 10/17/2007 11:46 PM (GMT 0)
this bug, MRSA. has been around forever.some one thought they would sensationalize it and it got picked up by all the loser news outfits. its the same "flesh eating" bacteria that was in the spot light 10 years ago. its just a scare tactic to manufacture news. IMO
Posted 10/17/2007 11:51 PM (GMT 0)
Well that's good to know, thanks.
Posted 10/18/2007 12:31 AM (GMT 0)
I Agree with Randy.
Posted 10/18/2007 1:50 AM (GMT 0)
MSRA is an extremely dangerous superbug that is a form of staph bacteria that has become resistant to all antiobiotics except maybe vancomycin. The moral of this story is that we as a culture have squandered the power of antibiotics by misusing and overusing them, not only for every cold and flu virus (for which they are of no benefit) but also in order to support our industrialized food production methods. As a result of these abuses, bacteria that used to be easily vanquished by penicillin have mutated and are now resistant to all the weapons in modern health's arsenal.

Any of us who are immuno-compromised would do very well to be concerned. The best thing you can do to protect yourself in hospitals is to insist that every health care professional who comes in contact with you washes their hands prior to contact. Unfortunately studies have shown that doctors are among the worst offenders when it comes to washing in between patients during hosptial rounds. The other thing, unfortunately, is to get out of hospital as fast as you can. They have become the most dangerous place for immuno-compromised patients.
Posted 10/18/2007 3:34 PM (GMT 0)
Oh new news.  They have now shut down 21 schools back east and 3 children have died because of this super bug.  I guess it's not just limited to hospitals.  I will try and get more information.
Posted 10/18/2007 3:46 PM (GMT 0)
Bell,
Don't forget another overuse that is contributing to the superbug. The overuse of Antibacterial soap.
Posted 10/18/2007 4:40 PM (GMT 0)
MRSA has been around forever. My mother got it while in the hospital. I visited her when she had it becuase no one in the nursing staff told us about it. I did not get the infection. I think the usual precautions are still in play even with the media rush...wash your hands, cough into your elbow, don't share food drinks or makeup, keep your sinus passages well moistened.

I agree that antibacterial soap has been overused Mish! I grew up with good old fashioned Zest and irish Spring and had only a few really bad colds as a kid. I don't buy antibacterial anymore
Posted 10/18/2007 11:18 PM (GMT 0)
Just a side note I ended up contracting VRE while hospitalized with my surgeries and complications that arose with them. It was found in the abscess drainage that was tested 2 times. VRE is vancomycin resistant bacteria...got to say having my own room after intestinal surgery was comforting to me tho. my surgeon still thinks it was misread but it was tested pos 2 times tho but he mentioned it to them (since the bloods prior to my last Sx didnt prove VRE) this way I would have a private room after my ostomy was reversed. I am one who had C prior to Sx and had issues going placed other than home, a hotel room (after a cpl days of not going) and other close relatives I.E. parents or grandpartents house.
Posted 10/19/2007 7:57 AM (GMT 0)
The rise in drug resistant bacteria is no small matter. I've been doing a lot of research on this recently and corresponding with a lot of scientists, doctors and politicians. I'm captain of my high school debate team and the policy we're proposing this year is a decrease in use of antibiotics for this reason.

Antibiotics are heavily overprescribed and misused, especially in America, in both humans and livestock. Bacteria strains mutate and evolve to become immune to the effects of antibiotics, this progression is inevitable. However, the flood of antibiotics is making this problem increase dramatically and exponentially.

The problems with the current system are fourfold:

1) there is very little regulation.
2) there are few new antibiotics coming down the pipeline - all the easy ones have already been discovered, and it's not economically beneficially for big drug companies to invest in them. Someone from Eli Lily said something like "why waste money on drugs people take for 7 - 10 days when we could make a mint on chronic disease drugs, like anti-depressents and cholesterol medication, that people take for the rest of their lives?"
3) there is too little awareness of the general population
4) all programs are drastically underfunded.

There's this new bill, introduced to the house a couple weeks ago, HR 3697 I believe, the STAAR Act. You should check it out, it seems promising. Everyone I've spoken to strongly supports it, and at least it would be doing something to address the problem.


MRSA is just one kind of super-bug, the stapholococus strain. I think it stands for Multidrug Resistant Stapholococus Aurius, or something. But each bacteria has their own multidrug resistant strain. TB has a big one, especially. That's making everyone nervous.

And it's only going to get worse. I hate to be a fearmonger or a sensationalist, but it seems like those times are fast upon us.

Erica.
Posted 10/19/2007 11:46 AM (GMT 0)
MRSA is old news. Penicillin resistant Staph developed within 5-10 years of the invention of penicillin (in the 1940s). We made Methicillin to get around that in the 1950s. Within 5 years MRSA developed.

There are two strains. One found mostly in the hospital, which has a wider resistance to neumerous antibiotics, and is typically only susceptible to vancomycin or linezolid. And the other which is more likely to be found in the community ("Community acquired MRSA" - CA-MRSA).

CA-MRSA has a different resistance pattern to antibiotics. It is sensitive (for the moment) to bactrim, clindamycin, sometime doxycycline or erythromycin, as well as vancomycin and the newr antibiotics like linezolid.

CA-MRSA makes enzymes and protiens which make it particularly invasive, able to form abscesses, tunnel through tissues and destroy white blood cells. It most often causes skin infections, which turn into deeper tissue infections and abscesses. It gets into the blood stream and likes to settle in the lungs (necrotizing pneumonia), around the spine, and in muscle.

The problem is, that it is becoming VERY widespread. In some communities, if someone comes into the office with a skin infection, there is a 20-40% chance its is CA-MRSA from the start.

HYGIENE is key. Take disinfectant to the gym and wipe the equipment down before and after you use it. This is a COMMON place to find it. Dont share hand towels or other personal hygiene equipment. It also runs rampant at long term care facilities. People with chronic wounds are especially likely to be colonized with it.

If you get MRSA, you may become colonized. It likes to take up residence in your nose, the back of your throat and in your axilla/groin. You can be de-colonized with antibiotics by mouth, a nasal ointment, and deconontaminant body wash done simultaneously over 1-2 weeks.
Posted 10/19/2007 4:03 PM (GMT 0)
Habs,

The problem is that there are not many liquid soaps sold in US that arent antibacterial. (I dont like Ivory, but I might have to start using it).
Posted 10/19/2007 7:38 PM (GMT 0)
My husband had an MSRA infection. We thought it was just a boil at first. It spread 2in wide and 2 1/2 to 3in deep. We don't know where he picked it up but I had been in the hospital right before that. It was nasty and I worry about me getting it. Ecspically since I am starting Remicade soon. I think I am going to have Merrymaids come in and do a sterilization first or something. It makes me nervous.
Posted 10/19/2007 9:16 PM (GMT 0)
Just to let anyone who's interested know...I used to work in a state reference lab. I worked with all sorts of infectious diseases (identification, etc.). I worked with infectious, plague, anthrax, tularemia, west-nile virus, St Luis Encephalitis (very closely related to west nile, been here longer, causes more infections, but gets less media), TB, influenza, okay you name it. We had to pass Shigella to make sure we were competent (very nasty bacteria, quickly causes bad GI upset but won't kill you, luckily, my crohn's wasn't in flare mode)

We cleaned everything with a 10% solution of bleach. It does NOT cause resistance. You spray it and let it sit for at least 1 minute. 10% bleach is about 1 cap of bleach per 1 qt of water. Also you should wash your hands for a minimum of 25 seconds. The department of health services stated you should wash for at least the time to sing the happy birthday song. Oh and we didn't use antibacterial soap at the lab. Just standard soap. No one got sick. (We had to be very careful).

Costco does carry a soap called "Method" which is clear and free of any antibacterials. It is also not to rough on the hands, and I wash them a lot
...Hope this helps
Posted 10/19/2007 9:35 PM (GMT 0)
Thanks for that. I'll let my Mom know. She swears by bleach and has been dubbed the name "the bleach lady". I always thought I was doing good with the antbacterial soap. I'll have to rethink it. And I am going to get a cleaning service come in and make sure they use a bleach solution. I would do it myself but don't have the enrgy.
Posted 10/19/2007 9:39 PM (GMT 0)
Since my microbiology class where we tested common household products against various bacteria (including Staph. Aureus) I will keep using the antimicrobial hand soaps. The dial and soft soap (ingredient: triclosan) worked well on just about everything we tested for, and being immuno suppressed I take no chances. I'm also a huge germaphobe now ;0)

ps: I wasn't impressed with lysol, I like cleaners for solid surfaces with bleach and/or aldehydes and alkylating agents (Fantastik has them).
Posted 10/20/2007 4:56 AM (GMT 0)
I thought I would chime in on this. I work in a hospital, yes I use Remicade and methotrexate, am I worried about Staph, sure, but there is one common thing we can do to prevent Staph infections and that is to simply wash our hand in hot soapy water for a minimum of 20 seconds up to your wrists (not just the hands). All of America's accredited hospitals participate in what this called "National Patient Safety Goals" which requires hand washing and/or use of sanitizer upon entering any patients room. That includes house keeping, nursing staff, maintance and food service. You have the right to require any person entering your room to wash or sanitize their hands in your presence. Some states, such as Washington State, are currently rolling out programs to inform the patient of the need for hand washing. Patients rooms in many hopitals in that state actually have signs in every patient room asking if the person entering your room wash their hands and if they have not seen it, then it may not have been done. You have the right to demand this and frankly if you dont, you could be risking a potentially critical illness. If you have asked and have a health care provider of any service line question you, we then frankly they are not either aware of the protocal or they just dont care, and that is no hospital that I ever wish to be part of. Good luck and good health (sorry to go on a rant about this topic)!
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