MRSA (Methicillin-resistant Staphylococcus aureus) is a bacterial infection that does not respond well to antibiotics normally used to fight infections. That way, the sufferer will be difficult to treat and treat. The infection spreads easily, especially in crowded environments, and can quickly become a threat to public health. The initial symptoms are sometimes difficult to distinguish from a harmless spider bite. So you should immediately recognize MRSA before the infection spreads.
Step
Method 1 of 4: Recognizing MRSA
Step 1. Check for abscesses or boils
The first symptom of MRSA is the appearance of an abscess or boil that swells full of pus, which is firm to the touch and feels warm. These red boils have a pimple-like "head" and range in size from 2 to 6 cm or larger. It can appear anywhere on the body, and is very painful. For example, if a boil appears on your buttocks, you won't be able to sit down because your butt will hurt.
If you have a skin infection that isn't accompanied by a boil, it's probably not MRSA, but you should still see a doctor. You will most likely be given medication to treat a staph-susceptible streptococcal or aureus infection
Step 2. Distinguish MRSA boils from tick bites
An abscess or boil in the early stages can look similar to a regular spider bite. One study showed that 30% of Americans who reported being bitten by a spider actually had MRSA. If there is an outbreak of MRSA in your area, act with extreme caution and see a medical professional.
- If the MRSA outbreak is widespread, the health department must provide an announcement with a billboard showing an image of an MRSA abscess with a caption that reads "This is not a spider bite".
- The patient did not take the antibiotics given, because he believed that the doctor misdiagnosed that it was a spider bite.
- Be aware of MRSA, and always follow medical instructions.
Step 3. Watch out for fever
Although not all patients have a fever, there may be people who have a fever with a body temperature of more than 38 oC. This may be accompanied by nausea and chills.
Step 4. Watch out for signs of sepsis
"Systemic poisoning" is rare, but may occur if the MRSA infection is in the skin and soft tissues. While the patient can usually take some time and wait for test results to confirm the presence of MRSA, remember that sepsis is a life-threatening condition and must be treated immediately. Some of the symptoms that appear include:
- Body temperature over 38.5 oC or below 35 oC
- Heart rate more than 90 beats per minute
- Breath hunting
- Swelling (edema) in various places in the body
- Altered mental state (e.g. disorientation or unconsciousness)
Step 5. Don't ignore the symptoms
In some cases, MRSA can go away on its own without treatment. Boils can burst on their own, and the immune system will fight off the infection. However, MRSA often infects people who have weakened immune systems. If the infection gets worse, bacteria can enter the bloodstream, causing fatal septic shock. Also, this infection is highly contagious, and you can make a lot of people sick if you don't treat it.
Method 2 of 4: Treating MRSA
Step 1. Go to the doctor for a proper diagnosis
Most health care providers see multiple cases each week and should be able to diagnose MRSA easily. The clearest evidence for diagnosing this condition is based on the characteristics of the abscess or boil. But to be sure, the doctor will take tissue samples or samples from nasal mucus and will be tested in a laboratory for the presence of MRSA bacteria.
- However, bacteria take approximately 48 hours to grow, so direct testing may be inaccurate.
- New molecular assays that can detect MRSA DNA in just a few hours are now increasingly being used.
Step 2. Use a warm compress
Go to the doctor as soon as you suspect you have MRSA and treat the infection before it becomes dangerous. The first treatment for MRSA is to apply a warm compress to the boil to drain the pus onto the skin's surface. That way, when the doctor slices up the abscess to drain it, he or she can remove all the pus more easily. Antibiotics will help speed up the process. In some cases, a combination of antibiotics and a warm compress can drain the boil quickly without slicing the wound.
- Dip a clean washcloth in the water.
- Microwave for about 2 minutes, or until the washcloth is warm but not scalding your skin.
- Leave it on the wound until the washcloth is cool. Repeat this process 3 times per session.
- Repeat this warm compress for 4 sessions every day.
- When the boil becomes tender and there is clearly visible pus in the center, it is time for the doctor to drain it.
Step 3. Let the doctor dry the MRSA wound
Once the bacteria-laden pus has been lifted to the surface of the wound, the doctor will open the wound by slicing it, then removing and draining the pus safely. First, the doctor will anesthetize the area using Lidocaine and clean it with Betadine. Then, with a scalpel, the doctor will cut the "head" of the wound and drain the infectious pus. The doctor will apply pressure around the wound like when removing pus from a pimple, to make sure all the infection is removed. The fluid that is removed will be taken to a laboratory to test its reaction to antibiotics.
- Sometimes, there are several pockets of infection that are similar to a honeycomb under the skin. This bag must be broken open using a Kelly clamp to hold the skin open while the doctor treats the infection below the surface.
- Because most MRSA is resistant to antibiotics, the most effective way to treat it is by drying.
Step 4. Keep your wound clean
After drying, the doctor will clean the wound using an unneeded syringe, then bandage it tightly with gauze. However, the doctor will leave a knot at the end of the gauze bandage so you can pull and open the bandage to clean the wound every day in the same way. Over time (usually about 2 weeks), the wound will shrink until you no longer need the gauze. Even so, you should still wash the wound every day.
Step 5. Take the antibiotics given
Do not force the doctor to give antibiotics beyond the recommendations he gave, because MRSA cannot be cured with antibiotics. Overuse of antibiotics will only make the infection more resistant to treatment. However, in general there are two approaches to antibiotic treatment, namely for mild infections and severe infections. Your doctor may suggest the following treatments:
- Mild to moderate infections: take one tablet of Bactrim DS every 12 hours for 2 weeks. If you are allergic to this drug, take Doxycycline in a dose of 100 mg with the same drinking rules.
- Severe infections (IV delivery): Enter Vancomycin at a dose of 1 gram by infusion for at least one hour; Linezolid 600 mg every 12 hours; or Ceftaroline 600 mg for at least one hour every 12 hours.
- A health practitioner who understands infectious diseases will determine the length of therapy you should be given intravenously.
Method 3 of 4: Eliminating MRSA
Step 1. Seek information on how to maintain good hygiene to prevent MRSA
Because MRSA is highly contagious, everyone in your neighborhood should be very careful to take precautions and maintain hygiene, especially when there is an outbreak in the area.
- Use soap and lotion from a pump-bottle. Poking lotion with your fingers into the container or sharing soap with other people can spread MRSA.
- Do not share personal items such as towels, razors, or combs.
- Wash sheets at least once a week, and wash rags and towels after each use.
Step 2. Be careful when in crowded public spaces
Because MRSA spreads easily, you should be aware of the risks when in a crowded environment. This can be a family room at home or a crowded public space such as a nursing home, prison, hospital, and gym. While many common areas are regularly sanitized for germs, you never know when the last cleaning was done and who was there before you. If you're concerned about this, it's wise to take precautions.
- For example, bring your own towel to the gym and place it near you to exercise. Immediately wash the towel after use.
- Take advantage of the antibacterial wipes and liquid provided by the fitness center. Sterilize all equipment before and after use.
- Wear slippers or shower shoes when you shower in a public bathroom.
- If you have wounds or a weakened immune system (such as people with diabetes), you have a higher risk of infection.
Step 3. Use hand sanitizer
You will be in contact with various bacteria throughout the day. This can come from the person with MRSA touching the doorknob before you, and touching the nose before the person opens the door. It's a good idea to use hand sanitizer throughout the day, especially when in public. Ideally, hand sanitizer should contain at least 60% alcohol.
- Use hand sanitizer at the supermarket, when receiving change from the cashier.
- After playing with their friends, children should wash their hands or use hand sanitizer. The teachers they interact with must also follow the same standards.
- Whenever you think you have an infection, use hand sanitizer just in case.
Step 4. Wash the surface of household furniture using bleach
Diluted bleach solution is an effective ingredient against MRSA fleas in your home. Incorporate these measures into your household work routine during an outbreak in the community to reduce the risk of infection.
- Always dilute bleach before using it to clean furniture. Otherwise, the surface color of your furniture may fade.
- Use this ratio: 1 part bleach to 4 parts water. For example, mix 1 cup of bleach with 4 cups of water to clean the surfaces of your furniture.
Step 5. Don't rely too much on vitamins or natural therapies
No studies have been able to show that natural therapies and vitamins can boost the immune system to prevent MRSA. The only studies that look promising (which were conducted by administering very large doses of vitamin B3 to study subjects), should not be relied upon because the doses administered were unsafe.
Method 4 of 4: Preventing the Spread of MRSA in the Hospital Environment
Step 1. Learn the differences between the different types of MRSA
When a patient with MRSA is brought to the hospital, it means that the patient is exposed to infection from the environment where he lives (community-acquired). Patients who come to the hospital for another, completely unrelated condition and who receive MRSA while they are there are called hospital-acquired MRSA. Hospital-acquired MRSA usually has no effect on the skin and soft tissues, so you won't see abscesses and boils acquired at home often. Such patients will quickly develop more severe complications.
- MRSA is a leading cause of preventable death and is an epidemic in many hospitals around the world.
- The infection can spread rapidly from patient to patient through careless hospital staff and not following proper infection control procedures.
Step 2. Wear gloves to protect yourself
If you work in a medical setting, you should wear gloves when interacting with patients. Just as important as wearing gloves is changing gloves after handling a patient. If you don't change gloves, you may be protected, but you could spread the infection between patients.
The infection control procedures will be different in each ward, even within the same hospital. For example, infections are more common in the emergency department (ER), so contact and isolation precautions will usually be stricter. In addition to gloves, hospital staff may have to wear protective suits and masks
Step 3. Wash your hands regularly
This is perhaps the most important measure to prevent the spread of infectious diseases. You can't wear gloves all the time, so washing your hands should be a major step to prevent the spread of bacteria.
Step 4. Perform MRSA examination on all new patients
When handling fluid discharge from a patient's body (whether through sneezing or surgery), you should check whether the patient has MRSA or not. Everyone in a crowded hospital environment is at risk for MRSA. MRSA testing can be done by taking a fluid from the nose that can be analyzed within 15 hours. Screening all new patients (even if they don't show symptoms of MRSA) can reduce the spread of infection. For example, one study showed that about 1/4 of preoperative patients who did not have symptoms of MRSA still carried the bacteria.
Conducting examinations on all patients may be something that makes no sense in terms of hospital time and budget. Perhaps you could consider testing all patients undergoing surgery or patients whose body fluids have come into contact with hospital staff
Step 5. Isolate patients suspected of having MRSA
One thing you don't want in a crowded hospital environment is contact between infected and uninfected patients. If a separate bedroom is available, isolate the patient suspected of having MRSA into that room. If this is not possible, at least MRSA patients should be quarantined in the same area and separated from other uninfected patients.
Step 6. Ensure that the hospital has a sufficient number of staff
If there is a shortage of employees, hospital employees who are overworked will get tired and lose focus. Nurses with adequate sleep tend to be better at carefully following infection control procedures, thereby reducing the risk of spreading MRSA in hospitals.
Step 7. Always be alert for hospital-acquired signs of spreading MRSA
In the hospital environment, patients do not always show early symptoms of abscess. Patients wearing a central venous tube are particularly susceptible to septic MRSA, and patients on a ventilator are at risk for MRSA pneumonia. Both can be life threatening. MRSA can also appear as a bone infection after a patient has had knee or hip replacement surgery, or as a complication due to surgery or wound infection. This condition can also lead to septic shock, which can be life-threatening.
Step 8. Follow the procedure when inserting a central venous tube
Whether it's when installing a tube or when caring for it, lax hygiene standards can contaminate the blood and lead to infection. Infection in the blood can flow to the heart and deposit on the heart valves. This will cause "endocarditis", which is the accumulation of large lumps of material containing infection. This condition is very life-threatening.
The way to treat endocarditis is to perform surgery on the heart valve and give antibiotics intravenously for 6 weeks to sterilize the blood
Step 9. Take time to maintain cleanliness when handling the ventilator
Many patients contract MRSA pneumonia while on a ventilator. Bacteria can enter when hospital personnel insert or use a breathing tube that is attached to the windpipe. In an emergency, hospital staff may not have time to wash their hands properly, but you should always try to follow this important step. If you don't have time to wash your hands, at least wear sterile gloves.
Tips
- Wash and sterilize linen, clothing, and towels that come in contact with the infected skin area.
- Practice good hygiene at all times. For example, wipe and clean all objects that have come into contact with the wound, such as doorknobs, lamps, countertops, sinks, bathtubs, and other household appliances, because infected people can transfer bacteria when they touch these objects.
- Cover cuts, scrapes, or cuts with a bandage until they are completely healed.
- Use an alcohol-based hand sanitizer to sterilize your hands when you handle or touch a wound.
Warning
- MRSA skin infections are naturally quite sensitive. Do not squeeze, dry, or squeeze the boil. If this is done, the infection will get worse, and can spread to other people. Cover the infected area, and consult a healthcare professional to deal with this problem.
- Some people are carriers of the MRSA bacteria. This means, the bacteria usually have attached to the skin but did not cause infection in the person. The doctor may test people close to you to determine whether they are carriers of the bacteria or not. The nurse will take a test sample from the patient's nostril. For carriers of MRSA bacteria, doctors will usually prescribe antibiotics continuously to eradicate the bacteria thoroughly.
- For patients with weakened immune systems, MRSA infection can be life-threatening because it can be difficult to treat, especially when the infection has invaded the lungs and entered the bloodstream. In such cases, the patient usually has to be hospitalized for a long time, given treatment, and monitored continuously.
- Torturing bacteria types like MRSA are adaptable to nature and can easily withstand common antimicrobial drugs. Therefore, you should strictly follow the antibiotic prescription given and the medicine should not be shared with other people.
