Anyone know about this new Staph infection?

[landadmiral]

I've been hearing on the news (http://www.foxnews.com/story/0,2933,302396,00.html) of some super strain of Staph infections running through schools. Entire school districts have been shut down (http://www.kval.com/news/health/10591602.html).

I have a theory about it that I've adopted from a doctor of epidemiology - I heard him speak on the issue of epidemics. But want to see if anyone here has news before I say what it is.

[zeratul]

A kid in my school got it:smalleek: . Luckily they found out, and cleaned the school over the weekend.

[Thes Hunter]

From what I understand, this is just what health officials have been warning of for YEARS.

This is why there have been countless info pieces on the dangers of anti-bacterial hand soap. And why the plethora of anti-bacterial products is doing us harm as a society in the long term.

The more the bacteria are exposed to these agents, the more likely they will acquire mutations that allow them to survive. Unfortunately though, unlike the Warfarin resistant rats in WWII, resistant bacteria do not seem to be at much of a selective disadvantage compared to 'wild-type' bacteria in normal conditions.

(The British used Warfarin in WWII to control the rat population. It worked for a time, but soon the only rats that were alive were the ones that were resistant. So they stopped feeding them Warfarin. Within 2 generations or so, the rats lost their resistance, because the mutations that allowed the resistant rats to survive, hindered them when there wasn't any Warfarin around)

With bacteria, they tend to carry their resistance in a small circular piece of DNA called a plasmid. Bacteria can swap these plasmids between themselves, transforming wild-type bacteria into resistant bacteria. Maintaining this plasmid doesn't take much energy, and therefore may not convey a selective disadvantage to the bacteria.

So basically we humans by our over use of the anti-bacterial products are evolving the bacteria into these super strains. :smallsigh:


Ok, rant over. :smallredface:

[Bor the Barbarian Monk]

Before there is mass-panic over staph, you should know a few things.

The first is that in all likelihood you have staphylococcus epidermis on you right now. It's very common. It's been on you for years. And - SURPRISE! - you're not dead! As far as I know, Staph needs a bleeding opening to get in. In most cases, you body can fight it. In some cases, like mine, you'll need meds to fight it. And if you're feeling extra panicky, take yourself to the doctor if you get an infected cut and he'll help you fight it.

The other thing you should know is that I've had staph MULTIPLE times. Remember when I had that recent surgery and my incision split wide and got infected? Staph! My doc took a culture of the leaky wound, told me I was already on the antibiotic that would kill the infection, and I'm still alive! The staph they're speaking of is RESISTANT, not antibiotic PROOF. Like many illnesses, it can be treated if diagnosed.

Another thing is that it seems during my entire life they have been predicting a disease of doom. Once again, the news media has been irresponsible in their reporting, hanging on tight to the idea of "if it bleeds, it leads." People have died of infected wounds before, but now that it's not as common, it's time to set off a little health crisis. Don Henley said it rather well in "Dirty Laundry."

We got the bubble-headed-bleach-blonde
Who comes on at five
She can tell you 'bout the plane crash
With a gleam in her eye
It's interesting when people die
Give us dirty laundry

Can we film the operation?
Is the head dead yet?
You know, the boys in the newsroom
Got a running bet
Get the widow on the set!
We need dirty laundry

So relax. And don't worry about your health...it'll go away. :smalltongue:

[bluewind95]

In my experience, the less you rely on antibiotics and such, the stronger your immune system becomes. Of course, there's limits and sometimes, meds are necessary.

But not always. Even in things like strep throat, a strong immune system can fight that off in, oh, a week. With no meds save for an aspirin when the fever goes too high.

[DraPrime]

It's not the first time this happens with a disease. The very reason why research is constantly being done on diseases we already have cures for are because eventually they'll become resistant, and we'll need a new antibiotic. While this does suck, it's not exactly new.

[MR.PIXIE]

All i know is that i have to get vaccinated..or ill be kicked out of school.
but i cant find a place to get it!:smallfrown:

[StickMan]

All i know is that i have to get vaccinated..or ill be kicked out of school.
but i cant find a place to get it!:smallfrown:

Um I don't think that exists or this would not be a major issue. Also what school do you go to, cause thats raw.

[Geode]

I’d like to put in my own two cents on a few points. I’m not a medical doctor but I’ve included links to references (APUA, CDC, Mayo).


And why the plethora of anti-bacterial products is doing us harm as a society in the long term. There’s a difference between anti-bacterial agents and antibiotics. In most cases, resistance to antibacterial agents requires physiological changes rather than obtaining a resistance-carrying plasmid. The problem with the recent use of Triclosan as an antibacterial is that it seems to act more like an antibiotic. [The information on the APUA (http://www.tufts.edu/med/apua/Q&A/Q&A_antibacterials.html) website seems to be an accurate assessment.]


Maintaining this plasmid doesn't take much energy, and therefore may not convey a selective disadvantage to the bacteria.
Actually it does take an energy commitment in terms of DNA replication and sometimes the burden of expressing genes carried on the plasmid. In general, bacteria cultured in the laboratory tend to lose antibiotic-resistance plasmids fairly quickly if not maintained under selective pressure (antibiotic in their environment). They also tend to multiply slower than cells not carrying the plasmid which creates a selective disadvantage. Horizontal transfer (passing the plasmid around) would have to be high to balance out the losses due to segregation and selective pressure. [I couldn’t find a good review article that didn’t require a journal subscription, so take it as you wish.]


The first is that in all likelihood you have Staphylococcus epidermis on you right now. S.epidermidis is indeed a common skin organism. However, MRSA is Methicillin Resistant Staphylococcus aureus. Aureus is an entirely different species and the one most often refered to as a "Staph" infection. S. aureus can also be found on the skin or in the nose of some otherwise healthy individuals, so what you said, Bor, still fits and MRSA strains can vary greatly in effect. (Here’s more from the CDC (http://www.cdc.gov/ncidod/dhqp/ar_mrsa_ca_public.html).)


Even in things like strep throat, a strong immune system can fight that off in, oh, a week. With no meds save for an aspirin when the fever goes too high. Strep throat is, in fact, one of the things that is dangerous to leave untreated. Without antibiotics, it could result in rheumatic fever (which can permanently damage heart valves), or glomerulonephritis (kidney inflammation), scarlet fever (rash), or abscesses. The reason why the risk of developing these problems is now considered very low in many places is due to effective antibiotic treatment before they occur. (If you don’t believe me, check the Mayo Clinic (http://www.mayoclinic.com/health/strep-throat/DS00260/DSECTION=7).)

[Semidi]

The moral of the story: If you don't want to get sick, don't wash your hands with anti-bacterial soap after going to the bathroom.

[Serpentine]

You know what gets me? The floor cleaner stuff I have, "hospital grade antiseptic" or something similar. Hospital grade. Why on earth would I need my floor do be as bug-free as a hospital? Am I going to eat off it? Okay, it's also to be used for other surfaces. But still, I'm not living in a hospital! My house doesn't have to be sterile! And antibacterial toilet cleaner, what's up with that? I'd be worried if you're getting that close to the toilet. If you're worried about your kids, well, they need to build up their immune system anyway. I mean really. There's a reason Golden Staph is an issue in hospitals. I think there's a reason allergies seem to be getting more frequent.

KIDS: EAT DIRT!

*ahem*
I think I remember some mention of Staph being found outside of a hospital, but I can't remember where, and I don't think there was any big panic about it. I do have a vague feeling that it was somewhere worrying, though, like on a bus or in water bubblers or something.

[Raiser Blade]

KIDS: EAT DIRT!


Actually i heard that this would acually be good for you.

@V O RLY? I was just providing backup for your statement.:smalltongue:

[Serpentine]

That would be why I said it.

[Lilly]

All i know is that i have to get vaccinated..or ill be kicked out of school.
but i cant find a place to get it!:smallfrown:

I don't think they have a vaccine for MRSA yet. Most schools have a standard set of vaccines that you need to get to attend, and I've even if they did have a MRSA vaccine, I don't think it'd be on that list yet.

But in case you forgot Vaccines=good. Not just for you, but for everyone else too.

[Bor the Barbarian Monk]

S.epidermidis is indeed a common skin organism. However, MRSA is Methicillin Resistant Staphylococcus aureus. Aureus is an entirely different species and the one most often refered to as a "Staph" infection. S. aureus can also be found on the skin or in the nose of some otherwise healthy individuals, so what you said, Bor, still fits and MRSA strains can vary greatly in effect. (Here’s more from the CDC (http://www.cdc.gov/ncidod/dhqp/ar_mrsa_ca_public.html).)

My goal in posting was to point out that I've had staph multiple times, and I'm still alive. And all it seems to take is a shower to give it to me. Water softens a wound, water then carries the staph bacteria to the softened wound, and the staph sneaks in. What follows is panic because an infected wound can turn into osetomyellitis in my delicate diabetic self. (Who needs petri dishes when we diabetics will grow germs and bacteria for you just fine? :smallyuk: )

I'm also fairly upset with the media. Tonight, one of their promos was, "A new flesh-eating bacteria found in schools! Find out what officials are doing about it." Are we not scared enough? Do we really need a constant reminder that there is death and disease in the world? Instead of just telling us it's there, tell us what we can do to avoid it, or what we can do if we contract it. They give us just enough information to make the general populace panicky, then leave us to handle it. They don't say how common staph is. They don't mention how rare the tougher staph breeds occur. They don't list symptoms of the infection, (other than death). And I'm willing to bet that as a result of their irresponsible reporting that there's an influx of patients at doctors' offices with everyone wanting to know how long they have to live because of an infected boo boo. :smallmad:

[Micate]

I'm also fairly upset with the media. Tonight, one of their promos was, "A new flesh-eating bacteria found in schools! Find out what officials are doing about it." Are we not scared enough? Do we really need a constant reminder that there is death and disease in the world? Instead of just telling us it's there, tell us what we can do to avoid it, or what we can do if we contract it. They give us just enough information to make the general populace panicky, then leave us to handle it. They don't say how common staph is. They don't mention how rare the tougher staph breeds occur. They don't list symptoms of the infection, (other than death). And I'm willing to bet that as a result of their irresponsible reporting that there's an influx of patients at doctors' offices with everyone wanting to know how long they have to live because of an infected boo boo. :smallmad:

Which will lead to increased antibiotics use, increasing the ratio of tougher bacteria vs common ones.

[Serpentine]

They don't list symptoms of the infection, (other than death). And I'm willing to bet that as a result of their irresponsible reporting that there's an influx of patients at doctors' offices with everyone wanting to know how long they have to live because of an infected boo boo. :smallmad:
My mum once had a patient come in positive she had bird flu. So she asked her whether she'd been making out with any Indonesian chickens. Guess what? She hadn't.
Not so personally serious, but that same thing bugs me about this whole horse flu epidemic here. First, it was "They're deciding whether or not to let this horse into Australia, because it comes from an infected area, and Australia's never had any horse flu" and then "Horse flu is in Australia! It's everywhere! We can't stop it! Who's fault was it? Who know?!", with no intermediate explanation, and no real description of just what horse flu is, what its symptoms are, what its effects on the horses are, etc.
Not really related... but annoying?

[Zeb The Troll]

Okay, Bor. Normally I would agree with you about the scare tactics of the media. Also, about your normal staph infections being fairly innocuous. But here's something I don't think has been posted in this thread yet.

The reason people are talking about it is because the way they found out it was present in this area is that a student died. A 17 year old football player who suffered in a hospital for a week. That is why whole school districts in and around DC are closed for sterilization. This infection is deadly. It killed someone. An otherwise normal healthy young student. More than 30 others are in hospitals right now.

[Trog]

So she asked her whether she'd been making out with any Indonesian chickens.

:smalleek:

:smallsigh:

Why does Trog always pick the wrong chicks to make out with at parties mumble grumble mumble... :smallannoyed:

*Excuses himself*

[The Prince of Cats]

Why on earth would I need my floor do be as bug-free as a hospital?
Well that depends; you really don't want your house as bug-free as a UK hospital... (I love the NHS, I really do, but one of the local hospitals had a whole load of C. Difficile deaths recently and I wonder about my pregnant wife and her safety)

[Telonius]

I'm not particularly worried about it. From what I can gather, the bacteria killed the kid pretty quickly. While that's horrible and scary, it probably means that the outbreak will burn itself out quickly. Remember how Ebola was going to kill us all? Well, no; it killed so quickly that people couldn't infect each other. Basically, the disease painted itself into an evolutionary corner. Can't reproduce unless it infects new hosts; but it kills before it gets the chance to infect. It's the delayed-onset diseases that are really problematic.

People are scared of this because it's new. You're probably more likely to die in a car crash than to die of the new Staph infection. But not many people freak out about cars - because car crash deaths are accepted as a normal part of modern life.

[reorith]

it is just another indicator that this planet wants us gone.

[landadmiral]

Well, here's what the Epidemiologist surmized...

While there has not been hard evidence of the source, he theorizes that this new super staph falls into the same category of other 3rd world infectious diseases that do have hard evidence of the source.

We are having an influx of 3rd world diseases, once eradicated in the U.S., because of the influx of 3rd world people into the nation (TB *my highschool just had over 500 new cases this last year*, cholera, measels, mumps, dengue, chagras, the plague, etc)

He also said that the CDC isn't doing thier job properly to curtail the spread of infectious diseases.

As far as cures for this staph, who knows. But he did say of way to stop the spread of the 3rd world diseases, which i won't go into to avoid getting political.

[Kitya]

I agree that people with a normal or better immune system are probably not going to have to worry about any infections, flu's etc. It's those of us without an immune system (or a very low one) that need to worry, and we can get something from you.

I have Sarcoidosis. It's an auto immune disease. I didn't do anything wrong to get it. No one knows HOW you get it, or why some people do and some don't. They do seem to think it's not hereditary... which is good news for my child, but I'm not totally sure I believe it because my Aunt has Lupus... which Sarcoid is in the same family of. The best part is, my Sarcoid went untreated for about 4 years because it was fairly new, and my doctor back home had never heard of it. When you first get it, it's usually accompanied by a rash, which this doctor saw, and treated me for Scarlet Fever. So... Sarcoid lives in your lungs usually... so... for 4 years it did permanent lung damage, I went thru flu to bronchitis, to pnemonia constantly. I was sick at least once a month. I was beginning to think it all had to be in my head because NO ONE gets sick that often. When we found it, it was a relief to know that there WAS something wrong. After 2 1/2 years of vigorous steroid therapy (I soooo don't like prednisone!) we managed to get this into remission. There is no cure. Ever. My immune system is permenantly screwed up. I don't get sick as often now, but then, I can't work either, because if I do, I get sick. And when I DO get sick, I REALLY get sick... usually ending up with either a double throat infection, or a stay in the hospital.

I don't keep my house sterile, because I agree, a little germs are good for you. My daughter is a year old, and she eats dirt. *chuckles* She also eats grass and leaves. I was the same way when I was little. Fortunately for me, she seems to have inherited her daddy's immune system, which is amazing. Even so, I'm already teaching her about good practice on hand and face washing, because schools, especially preschools and daycares, have lots of kids who are going to get sick, and I'd prefer she didn't get too sick so she doesn't get me sick. Yes, daycares and preschools wash all the toys (I worked in one so I know), but only at the end of the day.

I have gotten sick from the ones I cared for in the daycare... he was only miserable and sick... I ended up in ICU with heart and Blood pressure monitors, and almost in a coma. So yeah.... I tend to pay attention when they say things are going around.

As you can guess, I'm on the "you don't have a choice you ARE having this flushot" list. I get a slight reaction even from that. Altho I can handle that reaction.. nothing like the reaction I had when I had to have my MMR (mumps measles rubella) shot when I moved down to the States. I wound up in emergency after that shot.

Do I think they're over dramatizing this in the news? Yeah.. a little... but, I also pay attention because it's stuff like that that can kill me. I will die from this Sarcoid. I know that, and accept that. I'm just making sure that it doesn't happen for a long long time to come.

[Syka]

Those third world diseases never left. The numbers just got cut drastically, because of vaccines and the like. Most of the people who get sick are those who opt out of getting the vaccine. I know at my university you can sign a waiver saying you understand that if you don't get certain vaccines (namely the one for menengitis) that you know the risk and will not hold the school responsible. I heard something like HALF of the students forgo the vaccine. You can also get religious waivers.

I dont think our issue is an influx of people come from third world countries. I think our problem is when people don't get vaccinated for stuff they can, and then the media latches on when something happens to that person.

And I doubt this Staph bug came from a third world country. As others have said, these more infectious deadly forms are normally found in hospitals (scary, ain't it?). I'm not saying it couldn't have, I'm just saying I doubt it.

Cheers,
Syka

[StickMan]

But in case you forgot Vaccines=good. Not just for you, but for everyone else too.
Well unless they are the things causing Autism in kids in which case not always. But over all yes very much.

I think this whole thing is just another media scare tactic anyone remember SCARS or bird flue. This one is a little scarer than toughs to but until it becomes an epidemic I'm not to scared of it.

[landadmiral]

I dont think our issue is an influx of people come from third world countries. I think our problem is when people don't get vaccinated for stuff they can, and then the media latches on when something happens to that person.

And I doubt this Staph bug came from a third world country. As others have said, these more infectious deadly forms are normally found in hospitals (scary, ain't it?). I'm not saying it couldn't have, I'm just saying I doubt it.

The non-vaccinated are also part of the problem that he listed, but if your fellow classmates are immunized, chances are highly unlikely you'll get it from anyone around you since everyone is immune and not a carrier...till an outside source brings it in. THEN, you become part of the problem.

He also said that hospitals are a horrible horrible place to go because you have a greater chance of getting sicker than you already are because of all the various diseased in closed quarters.

I'm a fan of the bird flu being media hype. And your yearly flu shot being media hype...2 years in a row a 'new' and 'dangerous' flu strain had developed...the next year supply was short...the next year they only made enough supply for children and the elderly so 'get yours while there is still supply'...the next year it was bird flu...the bird flu story died for 8 mos and resurfaced the following fall...i can't wait to hear why we should get a flu shot this year.

[Syka]

The non-vaccinated are also part of the problem that he listed, but if your fellow classmates are immunized, chances are highly unlikely you'll get it from anyone around you since everyone is immune and not a carrier...till an outside source brings it in. THEN, you become part of the problem.


I'm trying to figure out what you mean by this. We got a letter from our colleges President about a student on campus who had menengitis. It said that chances are you had nothing to worry about, if you were vaccinated. If you were not you needed to find out if you had come in contact with the student and/or get the vaccine. Vaccines (to a great degree) prevent you from having to worry about contracting the disease it counteracts, even if you come in contact with a carrier. At least, that is my understanding of it.

So where is someone who is vaccinated part of the problem?

[ForzaFiori]

Staph hit our school last year, about 8 ppl on the football team, and the atheletic trainer, and a couple ppl got it. while no one died (i doubt it was this stronger strain), we did learn how to deal with it, so i'm not worried. I have an excellent immune system, and due to knowing what an infected wound feels like (not good), i've adopted the practice of applying iodine to any cut that i feel requires a band-aid.

[ForzaFiori]

So where is someone who is vaccinated part of the problem?

they're a problem b/c they become carriers. they take the virus from place to place, and show no signs of having the illness. therefor you dont realize that they will infect you, since they are immune.

[Hell Puppi]

Least it's not Captain Tripps, the Super Flu :smallamused:

(sorry, had to make a Stephen King reference)

[Serpentine]

they're a problem b/c they become carriers. they take the virus from place to place, and show no signs of having the illness. therefor you dont realize that they will infect you, since they are immune.
But if everyone's vaccinated, no problem, and it's the non-vaccinated's (or parents') own fault (people with medical reasons excused, of course). And I'm dubious about this carrier thing. If you're talking about inside the body, the point of vaccines is they teach the body to destroy it, not just to stop it doing damage. If you're talking outside the body, good hygeine should handle that, and I think most viruses are relatively fragile, anyway.

[Extra_Crispy]

I work in a hospital and am about to be a nurse (I take the test on the 20th of November, wish me luck) I see MRSA lots (Methicillin-resistant Staphylococcus aureus), as well as C-Diff (Clostridium difficile), and sometimes VRE (Vanocomycin-resistant Enterococci).

First it is not the anti-bacterial hand washes on house cleaners that caused it, and they will get rid of it off of your hands and such. We use an anti-bacterial alcohol foam to wash our hands between actually washing them with soap and water. (This does not work for C-diff, you must wash your hands with soap and water after every contact with a patient with c-diff).

MRSA is the exact same staph that everyone has on their skin, except that it is resistant to one of the strongest antibiotics, methicillin. Where the problem from it comes in is when you have a break in the skin or have immune problems, like Kitya or Bor (his diabeties causes blood flow issues and screws up the ability of the body to heal and get the white blood cells to the wounds) The reason why healthy people are still getting very ill is that the infection can and does spread. A healthy person gets a small wound and sometimes may miss it or not think anything of it, then they get into contact with MRSA say on their hands by touching someone that has it and then they touch the small wound. This causes an infection and the wound will not heal. A non-healing wound allows the MRSA to get into the blood and cause sepsis. Now this is serious and can cause death quickly, the poisons the bacteria lets out causes a severe and quick drop in blood pressure. No BP=death very quickly. And once in the blood it is very hard to fight because it has spread through out the body.

The other bad thing about MRSA is that it can live on any surface for (if I remember right) more than a weak. Does this mean that you have to be careful of everything you touch, no (unless you are like Kitya) What it does mean is wash your hands after going to the bathroom or being in areas where there is a high chance to get the disease. Put anti-bacterial ointment on wounds and if they are fairly big or they are not healing normally go to the hospital. My right leg is 3rd degree burned from the knee down to the ankle, I run into stuff all the time and break open the skin/scars there all the time. I go into rooms with people that have MRSA in their wounds even with that wound open. I am just careful not to touch the wound to anything and to keep neosporin and a bandage over it. Never has been infected and it heals up untill the next time I hit it. On the other had I have a friend that, while being a great guy, is a total slob. I would rather wallow in a pig pin then walk into his appartment. He had scrapes all over his lower left leg and they got infected, not having insurance he did not go to the hospital. He came over to the house to play a game and the wound decided to seap. Needles to say we were very unhappy with him and after getting him to the bathroom I had him wash his leg in the tub. I pored some alcohol over the wound, wrapped it with some bandages I had (for my leg whenever I bump it) and then wrapped it with an ace bandage. We mopped the whole floor and area where he was with almost full strenght pine-sol. No one that was in contact with him got MRSA (we found out later it was MRSA) but me. My left leg is not as badly burned as my right but the thigh was used multiple times for donor sites so it has a fiarly thick scar on it that still gets hair trying to come throung so I get ingrown hairs. I just so happened to have had a sore from picking out an ingrown hair on that leg and was wearing shortes at the time my friend had his infected wound. Though I took a shower after helping my friend the little wound got infected. As it was so little and I have had them many times before I though nothing of it and did not apply any neosporin to it. 3 weeks later I have this boil like thing comming up on my thigh. I go to the doctor and he cut it open and cleaned it out (very painful) gives me antibiotics and pain pills :smallbiggrin: and sends me home. They tested it and it was MRSA in the wound. The antibiotics cleared the rest of it up and now I have a slightly different looking scar on top of the one that was already there. It was no big deal as I went to the doctor quickly and got antibiotics for it.

Unfortunatly what probably happened to the 17 year old kid was that he probably got a small cut some where and went into a locker room and it got infected with MRSA (like I said it can live on surfaces for more than a week) He then thought nothing of it as everyone gets small scratches all the time and when it was not healing he payed it no attention. It got into his blood and he got septic. ANY bacteria that gets into your blood and causes sepsis and you are in trouble quickly.

More facts about MRSA. It used to be a hospital only bacteria. Only people that came into the hospital got it. Now it is seen in the community more then the hospital. They can use a few different drugs to get rid of it including Vanocomycin, that is where VRE is a pain in that it is resistant to Vanocomycin also. Think of the drugs almost like a pyramid. The weakest ones or the ones that are cendered for only certain diseases being at the bottom and the stronger ones and broader acting being at the top. If a bacteria gets resistant to a drug then it usually is resistant to the drugs below it also. Vanoco is one of the strongest broader acting drugs.

Sorry about the book but I just had a lot to say :smallwink:

[Syka]

Crispy, thanks for the info. That probably cleared a lot up.

And I'm going to be watching some scrapes I got playing Four Square today. :smallwink: Wiped out on wet gravel pavement. Wearing shorts and a tank top. Equals ow. Just minor stuff. Heh.

Stay healthy everyone!

Cheers,
Syka

[Space-Is-Curved]

There are six or so football (American football) players at my school with it, but they are still able to play as long as the wound has closed, is in the healing process, and have it covered. The rumors spread quickly. Yesterday everyone was freaking out and talking about how our school is going to be closed and so on, but all the teachers know that it's just panic. A lot of the more intelligent of us, i.e. not panic-ers, suggested that the football teem comes out screaming and groaning with bandages all over and surgical masks for all the fans. No one would tackle us.

[Narmoth]

First of all, and most important to remember in this discussion:


MRSA infections are curable

if they are detected as such in time and are treated with the right antibiotics. Then it's not more dangerous than a normal staph. infection, just like Bor said.
Still, it brings a lot of problems, and they are the reason why both politicians, the median and doctors are so worried about it.

About staphylopcoccs:
Staphylococcus Epidermis - is normal to have on skinn, but might infect wounds and blood if they get the opportunity to it. Folowing the blood they might infect interior organs. They are treatable by antibiotics.
Staphylococcus Aureus - is normal in the nose and around genitalia / anus. Will normally not colonize other parts of the skinn as Staph E. outcompetes them there. Can infect wounds and systemically (in the body) if it gets there (picking your nose and then fingering your wounds without a hand wash inbetween is not a good idea at all), and is treatable by antibiotics, but not by all kinds of antibiotics because of many resistant strains.

Suggested reading (http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Methicillin-resistant_Staphylococcus_aureus)


Tonight, one of their promos was, "A new flesh-eating bacteria found in schools!

Well, it's actually not new. MRSA (Methicillin-Resistant Staphylococcus Aureus) have been observed in the US for about 15 years.
The problem is not that it's methicilin-resistant (methicilin being a certain branch of antibiotics), but that out of abut 5 types of antibiotics available to mankind, this bacteria is immune to 3 and scientists have also fount species immune to the 4th kind (vancomysin)
At present, no progress is made in finding a 6th, an scientists across the world fear that we will soon run out of medication against sertain strains of bacteria.

It's also worth to note that it's Staphylococcus Aureus, not Staphylococcus Epidermis that is the trouble. Remember, Bob, when I was furious about your doc prescribing you antibiotics "just in case"? Well, that was because that it's a direct invitation for MRSA to infect your wounds.
It's the practise in US and sentral Europe (especially France) to give antibiotics for any illness that has generated a lot of the resistant bacteria-strains. The only long term solution for the problem is to starting to treat the right problem with the right medication, in stead of viewing antibiotics as some miracle-drug for all kinds of problems.


Well unless they are the things causing Autism in kids in which case not always.

There is no scientific proof for that. The studies that media have sited to proove that have been less than conclusive about it, with many studies showing the contradictory.


they're a problem b/c they become carriers. they take the virus from place to place, and show no signs of having the illness. therefor you dont realize that they will infect you, since they are immune.

Carriers are people infected with the illness that don't get a infection that is serious enough to show clinicaly, but with a normal course of the disease, so his cells get infected, and the virus or bacteria get's to use it's normal route for spreading out of the persons body to new recipients
On the other hand, when a person is vaccinated, his immune system kills the pathogen, so he is not a carrier since whatever he or she is vaccinated agains don't get's to replicate in his or hers body.

A handy flowcharat about why we are f*****:

http://i141.photobucket.com/albums/r79/Narmoth/antimicrobialresistance.jpg

[julia90]

As far as I know staph infection is caused by bacteria called staphylococcus which can be found usually in the noses or on the skin of healthy people. The bacteria of staph infection can survive on inanimate objects such as towels or pillow for a long time before transferring to others who come in contact.

The bacteria can go through extreme environment such as extreme dry or hot weather or even saltiest environment.

Here is the useful website I often visit. You can refer and get more information about staph infection: authorityremedies.com
Good luck :)

[The Succubus]

As always, small cartoon birds have the answer:

https://youtu.be/xZbcwi7SfZE

[Razade]

As always, small cartoon birds have the answer:

https://youtu.be/xZbcwi7SfZE

You should check out the dates of these posts.