Good hygiene is the most important step in preventing MRSA.
MRSA
Methicillin-Resistant Staphylococcus Aureus, or MRSA, is a type of bacteria can that can a serious, or even fatal, staph infection. MRSA is highly resistant to treatment, although it does respond to few antibiotics. Its spread by direct person-to-person contact, so its important to practice good hygiene and wash hands regularly to prevent transmission.
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Methicillin-resistant Staphylococcus aureus (MRSA) infections can be severe. Most commonly, MRSA infections will be localized to the skin and can cause very mild superficial skin infections or more serious skin infections including cellulitis or abscesses (pus under the skin). Less commonly, MRSA infections can affect the lungs, causing pneumonia, or the blood, causing bacteremia. These infections are taken very seriously and require hospitalization. -
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Centerpoint Medical Center answeredSee All 3 AnswersStaphylococcus aureus is a common bacteria, which lives on the skin of most people. MRSA is a variant of Staphylococcus aureus which is becoming more prevalent with each passing year. It also lives on skin and mucosal surfaces, such as in the nose or mouth. The most common way MRSA spreads is through skin-to-skin contact. MRSA can also live on the surface of objects that have been touched by someone who carries MRSA on their skin. Examples include counters, towels, clothing, and razors. The best way to prevent the spread of MRSA is good hand-washing.
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Dr. Mehmet Oz, MD , Cardiology (Cardiovascular Disease), answeredThe most crucial tip you need to follow to prevent a hospital infection is one you've heard before. It's also one that's constantly ignored or forgotten. And it's one that the smartest patients take as seriously as monitoring the drugs they swallow and choosing the surgeons who try to repair them. It can be distilled to three clear words:
Wash your hands.
This order goes to everyone who may come in contact with you. They need to scrub their paws. Before touching you. Before touching your sheets, or your water cup, or your side table, or anything else that you could conceivably touch. If they're conscientious enough to put on new rubber gloves as well, that would be marvelous. But hand washing is mandatory.
It's understandable that harried nurses and doctors occasionally forget to do this, but it's not acceptable. No hospital should have a room without a sink or an alcohol hand gel dispenser. No clinic or doctor's office either.
Posting a sign in your room that says "Thanks very much for washing your hands" can help. This goes for all visitors, too. If you're able to get up, wash your hands with soap and water several times a day and after you touch each visitor.
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Sharine Forbes , Geriatric Medicine, answeredMethicillin-resistant Staphylococcus aureus or MRSA is an infection, which is associated to be cause by strain of staph bacteria that becomes immune to the effects of antibiotics. It can prove to be deadly if doctors are unable to develop a plan of action to weaken the strength of the MRSA infection and stop it from spreading.
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Dr. Ronald G. Glass, DDS , Dentist, answeredOur studies have demonstrated that both Community-acquired (CA)- and Hospital-acquired (HA)-MRSA have a wide range of antibiotic susceptibility and resistance. The only way to tell whether a germ is resistance is to challenge it with an array of antimicrobial agents. Again, our studies have demonstrated that while the Staphylococcus aureus may be resistant to methicillin and clindamycin, it may be susceptible to penicillin G. Dr. G.
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Intermountain Healthcare answeredSee All 2 AnswersStaph infections are usually treated with antibiotics. Some Staph infections, however, are resistant to the antibiotics usually used. This means the antibiotics don’t kill the germs. MRSA, or methicillin-resistant Staphylococcus aureus, is a type of Staph that is resistant to the antibiotics most often used to treat Staph infections.
There are specific antibiotics that can kill MRSA germs. Some patients with MRSA infections may need surgery to drain the sores. Your healthcare providers will decide which treatments are best for you. You will be treated for MRSA only if you have an active infection, such as a wound, a rash or a blood infection. -
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Portsmouth Regional Hospital answeredIf you're displaying the characteristic symptoms of a staph infection like methicillin-resistant Staphylococcus aureus (MRSA), a doctor will want to take a sample of your tissue or of the fluids from your nose to confirm the diagnosis. Laboratory workers will test the sample for the tell-tale bacteria. Depending on the testing methods used, the diagnosis will be confirmed in a few hours or up to two days.
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Dr. Mehmet Oz, MD , Cardiology (Cardiovascular Disease), answeredSee All 2 Answers
Staphylococcus aureus is a germ usually found in our nasal passages that can cause an infection in the right circumstances. When that happens, antibiotics can keep it in check. But methicillin-resistant Staphylococcus aureus (MRSA) is a particularly tough strain of Staph that isn't vulnerable to antibiotics. MRSA first raised trouble in hospital settings, but in the past decade, hospitals have begun to win the war against this fatal super bug while the rest of us are losing it. In some parts of the country, as many as 10% of people harbor MRSA. Although you can still contract MRSA in a health-care setting, these days you're more likely to get it from a neighbor or a friend.
When MRSA meets an open sore on your body, it moves in and multiplies at an alarming rate, causing you to develop a fever and your wound to become red, swollen, painful, and oozing. If you have a wound that won't heal, there's a good chance it has MRSA.
This content originally appeared on doctoroz.com -
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Portsmouth Regional Hospital answeredSee All 2 Answers
Most cases of methicillin-resistant Staphylococcus aureus (MRSA) have the same affect on the body as other staph infections. MRSA is just particularly difficult to treat or cure. The skin is the part of the body most affected by the condition, as the bacteria can cause boils, blisters, hair root infection, and peeling skin. If not monitored or treated properly, MRSA can spread to affect the blood, bones, and major organs of the body like the heart and lungs.