Information Found About CA-MRSA
There is a lot of talk swirling around this site about the recent outbreaks of ca-MRSA in SC high schools, including HHS and Waccamaw High School. Instead of remaining confused by what I've heard and abundant rumors, I prefer to research stuff myself and have found these sites to be very informative, and thought I'd share them.
These sites are not meant to spread panic, only to inform and to be a resource. This used to be only a hospital problem, but since the late 1990's has been found outside the hospital walls, hence the name- "community-associated" methicillin-resistant Staphylococcus aureus (CA-MRSA).
As stated in all the press, HHS is doing exactly what they needed to do about this, and as Audrey states, you can call individual schools and school district offices if you have concerns.
Resources for those curious about community-associated methicillin-resistant Staphylococcus aureus (CA-MRSA):
1. Are You Safe From Superbugs? from the Ladies Home Journal Magazine; this article is easy to read and very informative.
2. Center for Disease Control and Prevention; this is more technical, but very thorough.
3. Update on antibiotic-resistant Staph aureus from Tufts University. This site has links to other research done, and at the very bottom of the page has a link to a file that shows graphic photos of skin infections and wounds caused by ca-MRSA.
*WARNING: the photos are very graphic, viewer discretion is advised.
(you will need an Adobe Acrobat free download to view the file of digital photos, which can be obtained by visiting http://www.adobe.com/acrobat)
4. Even professional athletes have gotten it- read about Sammy Sosa having it in 2005 when he played for the Baltimore Orioles: Sosa Infection
The general theme here is:
*Cleanliness; the use of alcohol based hand sanitizers is highly recommended.
*Cover all wounds with bandaids/wraps...never, ever let anything "air dry" like they did back when I was a kid.
*Don't dismiss what looks like a spider bite or an insect bite; go to your family doctor or pediatrician and have anything suspicious tested. Besides, with the influx of brown recluse spider bites, we should all be careful of bites these days.
*Avoidance of sharing certain personal items such as towels and razors. Shared exercise equipment should be wiped down between users.
Be informed, and don't listen to rumors.
More information
Thanks, Jana, for such thorough research.
I encourage ANYONE that has a question about what's happening in any of our schools to call the school and/or the district office and ask for more information. The main district phone number is (843) 398-5100 (explain what you need and the operator can direct you to the appropriate person or department).
Now, a shameless plug....
This year the school district is starting a new e-mail news notification program called e-News. Subscribers to the service receive news (good and bad) as it happens. If you would like to be included in this list, please send your name, e-mail address and regular mail address to audreyc@darlington.k12.sc.us.
CA-MRSA
Thank you for doing such great research and
for sharing your findings.
Antibiotic Use
Thanks for the info, Jana. My only reservation upon reading the articles is the omission of the underlying cause of MRSA. While I am no expert, I have had to deal with some unusual healthcare issues in my daughter.
When Bailey's cancer was finally diagnosed, it was discovered that she had devoloped a rare disorder called opsymyoclonus syndrome. Basically, her body had tried to fight the cancer by forcing her immune system to attack the tumors. While this was effective in stopping the spread of the cancer, her immune system also attacked her nervous system. Bailey was put on a special drug to suppress her immune system for about four years.
As I learned to give the injections into her thigh, I was warned that she would be succeptible to infections, childhood diseases, fungus and bacteria because she would have little immunity to germs.
I learned to recognize the signs of yeast infections, fungus (ringworm) and MRSA in early stages to prevent their spread to Bailey's internal systems as well as to other family members. It was not unusual for a small cut or bug bite to become infected with various bacteria. Also, she was not allowed to take the usual childhood immunizations or be exposed to anyone else taking them. (None of my children could take the chicken pox vaccine because she would be exposed to the virus, although minimally.)
It is widely believed among healthcare professionals that bacteria tend to spread faster in people with weakened immune systems. This includes very young children, the elderly, people with autoimmune disorders and those with weakened immune systems from the overuse of antibiotics.
Antibiotics should be used only when needed for a bacterial infection, never for a virus. Antibiotics suppress your body's immune system and allow the spread of bacteria if not used properly. Today, antibiotics are widely abused by patients and doctors. So the next time your doctor offers a prescription for antibiotics, make sure you determine that you do have a bacterial infection before filling the prescription.
There is a good article about antibiotics at emedicinehealth
that includes the following passage on page 7 of the article:
Current Issues in Medicine and Antibiotics
One of the foremost concerns in modern medicine is antibiotic resistance. Simply put, if an antibiotic is used long enough, bacteria will emerge that cannot be killed by that antibiotic. This is known as antibiotic resistance. Infections exist today that are caused by bacteria resistant to some antibiotics. The existence of antibiotic-resistant bacteria creates the danger of life-threatening infections that don't respond to antibiotics.
There are several reasons for the development of antibiotic-resistant bacteria. One of the most important is antibiotic overuse. This includes the common practice of prescribing antibiotics for the common cold or flu. Even though antibiotics do not affect viruses, many people expect to get a prescription for antibiotics when they visit their doctor. Although the common cold is uncomfortable, antibiotics do not cure it, nor change its course. Each person can help reduce the development of resistant bacteria by not asking for antibiotics for a common cold or flu.
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