Marshall and Christina Jones, in College Station, TX.
Marshall is a recent survivor of near-fatal MRSA septicemia stemming from an infection of the epidural space of his spine. We live on a ranch with 2 of our 3 children (one is in college at LSU). We love animals and have a very large collection of pets (dogs, cats, donkeys, cows, chickens, ducks, horses…). Marshall is a former Realtor and is now the Director of Finance and Human Resources at Petrospect, Christina stays at home with the children and runs the household, her websites (including this one) and various other projects.
Marshalls MRSA Story
We are so concerned about this bacteria and the fact that no one is aware of it until they already have it, and sometimes not until it is too late. We are also concerned about MRSA becoming more prevalent in the community setting. When we needed it, we had the most difficult time finding relevant information, and we feel that God has directed us to use our situation and skills to help others in this way. In the process, we met Denise (below), who has been moved in a similar way to help others deal with this horrible illness. We hope and pray that if you are suffering with this life threatening illness that you will find the information you are looking for here, in an easy to find format. Please read our MRSA story, it is one that should encourage you, as well as open your eyes to some things you might not have thought about.
-M & C
Contact Marshall and Christina at christina@mrsaresources.com.
Denise Rauff
My name is Denise. I am the proud mother of 2 wonderful daughters, Emily and Jeanne. Emily is 5 years old. She is funny, kind, outgoing, compassionate and her teachers say she tells the best stories. Emily is a survivor of MRSA infection. Jeanne is 3 years old. She is funny, sweet, easy-going, thoughtful and her teachers say she isn’t afraid of anything! Jeanne is a survivor of MRSA infection. I had never heard of MRSA before July 2004. I only knew that Emily got sick much more often than any of her friends did. It seemed like as soon as she finished one course of antibiotics, she got sick again and went on another course of antibiotics. After two sets of ear tubes and numerous infections, her ENT cultured the drainage from Emily’s ears. Two weeks later, the test results showed MRSA and I found out the reason why my daughter wasn’t getting better.
It was at this point that I learned about the terrible void of information available about this bacteria, even in the medical community. I began to read anything and everything about MRSA that I could get my hands on.
We took Emily to a Pediatric Infectious Disease Specialist. She was treated with a 5 week course of Zyvox. I took comfort in the thought that with proper diagnosis, she had a good chance of the treatment being effective. The medications that are effective against MRSA are powerful and they come with their own set of risks. Emily’s blood count had to be monitored while on the Zyvox and she had certain food restrictions. She was pretty weak from being sick for so long and MRSA seems to make a person “out of sorts.” Emily had been on many courses of antibiotics before this that had held the infection at bay, only to come back again as soon as the medication was finished. The doctors had told me that if the Zyvox didn’t work, the next step would be Vancomycin. So, we prayed a lot and, thank God, the Zyvox worked! In October, Emily was pronounced MRSA infection free!
In the meantime, Jeanne got an ear infection. She had rarely been sick until now. Her ear infection got bad really quickly and her eardrum burst. We feared the worst. The ENT cultured her infection and we were happy to find out it was not MRSA. Jeanne was treated with normal antibiotics and the infection cleared up nicely. The fluid in her ears did not. The doctor advised us to have ear tubes put in, so the fluid could drain. It was affecting her hearing and there was concern of possible hearing damage. Of course, we were afraid that having tubes put in would make Jeanne more susceptible to getting MRSA. We asked the ENT, we asked the Infectious Disease specialist, we spoke with the pediatrician. At the time, I did not know about hospital acquired infections. I did not know that MRSA as an ear infection is extremely unusual. I did not know that the CDC defined a surgical site infection as one that occurs within one year of having a foreign body implanted. I did not know that it takes a certain amount of time for MRSA to develop into an infection or to incubate. I was simply frightened at the idea of my 3 year old having ear tubes put in. So, we waited. We postponed the surgery until Emily was considered infection free. Since the fluid was still in Jeanne’s ears, we then proceeded
Within 6 weeks, Jeanne had MRSA infection in both her ears. The surgeon had taken a sterile culture of the fluid when he operated, so we know she was MRSA free at that time. Over the New Year weekend, my sweet little 28 pound 3 year old had pus and blood oozing from both her ears. Her infection was cultured, she was put on Bactrim, but continued to get worse. The doctor then prescribed Zyvox for her for 3 weeks. One of the ear tubes that had just been put in got pushed out from the severity of the ear drainage. Emily had a recurrence so for a period of time, both my girls had active MRSA infection.
This was a very difficult time for me. I was very frightened. Since ear infections tend to be more painful at night, it was not unusual for me to be up and down with my children crying in pain for most of the night. I reached out for support on the internet, to help me cope with what was happening and to try to find answers out about how this could happen to two small children in one family.
Many people offered me their support at that time. When Tony Field, Chairperson of the UK MRSA Support Group, learned about my daughters’ infections from another group member, he contacted me by e-mail. Tony provided me with invaluable information and provided me with many resources. We remained in contact while my daughters’ were both ill. Emily & Jeanne call him their friend Tony from England. They would send him e-mails with smiley faces and animal pictures and Tony would send them assorted photos of animals like chickens and cats. It was a bright spot in a difficult time for our family.
Another person, from the Yahoo support group, held my girls in prayer. She prayed that God would use our situation for good. I clung to that prayer like a drowning person would cling to a life preserver, praying over and over again for my children’s health and for God to use our situation to help others.
My children have been MRSA infection free for about 3 months now, thank God. During this time, Tony and I have remained in contact. Tony and his wife Barbara offered to come to our country to help spread awareness about this infection in our country, just as they have done in their own country. My stepson, James, agreed to accompany Tony and Barbara on their tour of the USA and keep a journalistic chronicle of the trip. James introduced me to his friend and colleague, Jeff Beyrau, Director of Prizefighter Films. James, Jeff, Tony, Barbara and I all agreed that the best way to make this campaign as effective as possible was to create a documentary about MRSA and Tony’s fight against it.
Working towards creating this documentary for me is like a prayer in action. I thank God every day that my children’s infections didn’t spread and that they are both infection free and in good health today. I pray that God will use our situation for good. If one life is saved, if one limb is saved, if one family is saved from the suffering caused by MRSA infection, it will make every effort worthwhile. What happened to my children should not have happened. I can’t do anything to change that. But I can help raise awareness about this and try to prevent it from happening to others.
Contact Denise at denise@mrsaresources.com.
Maureen Daly
In January 2004 my mother, Johanna Daly, entered the Hospital for Joint Diseases in New York a healthy 63 year old woman. She had only a broken shoulder. Mom contracted infections in the hospital among the infections were MRSA. My poor mother suffered horribly for four months due to these infections. She became a unable to move anything but her head, she was incontinent, on a ventilator and a feeding tube. Perhaps the most difficult thing was that she had horrible difficulty communicating. She sounded as though she had suffered a stroke when she spoke. But she had not had a stroke all of her suffering was caused by infections.
On May 23, 2004 my mother died as a direct result of the hospital acquired infections. I knew that nothing would bring her back. I was angry and heart broken. An administrator at the Hospital for Joint Diseases told me that these infections and deaths happen everyday in every hospital all over America. I was told that I would just have to accept that these things happen. I was told that these infections are “the cost of doing the business of medicine.” My anger now became outrage. I thought it was bad enough that my mother had died from complications from a broken shoulder. My family and I had thought it reasonable to believe that one should not die from a broken shoulder. We were shocked by how accepting the administrators of the Hospital for Joint Diseases were of this horrible tragedy. It was quite simply no big deal to them.
My anger lead me to write many letters of complaint and inquiry. Most went unanswered. In March 2005, I heard of a group named RID or the Committee to Reduce Infection Deaths. I became the first volunteer. We work everyday to reduce infection deaths nationwide. We are confident that we will be successful. We are determined to prevent others from suffering my family’s tragedy. We were delighted when Governor Pataki signed the “Hospital Infection Reporting Bill” into law on July 21, 2005.
My work with RID introduced me to Denise. I am very pleased to join forces with her and her organization. I am happy to support her and Hands of Hope/MRSA Support in any way I can.
I applaud Denise and the MRSA SUPPORT group for their hard work and efforts. When my family was going through my mother’s illness and death we felt very alone. We had no idea how many others were going through similar experiences. We did not know where to turn. I am grateful that there is a place to turn for support, understanding and information.
94 responses so far ↓
Shaun Habeger // Dec 12, 2006 at 8:34 am
I am so happy to hear that sufferers of MRSA have loved ones such as yourselves with the strength and courage to battle the bureaucrats. Truely blessed are your loved ones!
KATHY // Dec 26, 2006 at 4:55 pm
MY BROTHER HAS HAD MRSA INFECTIONS OFF AND ON FOR THE PAST 2 YEARS. MY BROTHER IS AGAIN IN THE HOSPITAL WITH THIS BAD INFECTIONS. WE TOOK HIM TO THE HOSPITAL 2 WEEKS AGO BECAUSE HE WAS FALLING ALL OVER THE PLACE AND HIS BALANCE WAS TERRIBLE. MY BROTHER WAS TALKING OUT OF HIS HEAD. I BELIEVED HE HAD HAD A STROKE. HE WAS TALKING LIKE HE DIDN’T REMEMBER ANYTHING THAT HAD HAPPENED. HE IS HOW TODAY ON ANTIBOTICS AND HE IS TRYING TO GET HIS SELF TOGETHER AGAIN. MY BROTHER HAS TROUBLE PICKING HIS FOOT AND WALKING. MRSA IS VERY BAD. I BELIEVE MY BROTHER WILL HAVE TROUBLE THE REST OF HIS LIFE. MY BROTHER IS 56.
Sherri // Dec 30, 2006 at 11:32 pm
Thank you for creating this website. I have been looking for information. My husband was diagnosed with mrsa this year.(2006) The first time It happened, it was put off by the dr as a spider bite. It got really worse several days later and he ended up in the hospital with two places on his leg that had to be opened and drained. I had to do the packing for about 6 weeks. Sadly to say he has had 3 outbreaks since in different places on his body. Today he has a new one, which I know he is going to end up in the hospital yet again. This has been such a horrible ordeal. I have a 10 month old baby and a 4 year old and I am so scared they are going to get it.
I wonder if I have it also, I am always exhausted. I have fever blisters this past weekend that broke out on my lip, in my nose and the side of my face about my lip.
This had been a nightmare!
Thank you for your information
Sherri
(Birmingham, Alabama)
Keith Morgan // Jan 25, 2007 at 9:19 pm
My father-in-law has been in the hospital for 8 weeks due to complications from gall bladder surgery. He has been diagnosed with MRSA, and his surgical wound is not healing. The doctors say they do not know what else to do.
What a horrible disease and nightmare!
Keith
Nashville, Tennessee
Marcia McMullin // Feb 3, 2007 at 12:40 pm
I just now found your website. Yesterday was the first time I heard about MRSA; and that was from a lady at our bank.
My husband has been prone to boils and cysts practically all his life. He’s now 41, and in the past three years has had an episode where his left ear (outer ear) swelled up to at least 3 times its normal size, was totally covered in blisters that oozed clear liquit, and was nearly unrecognizable at an ear. He missed 2 weeks of work because he could not wear his hearing protection. One doctor suggested the infection, termed “cellulitis” had been caused by the hearing protection (ear muffs) he wore at work, but the company doctor said, “No,” so worker’s comp denied any connection.
Last Tuesday, he noticed two bumps on his scrotum that looked like pimples trying to come to a head. He drives a forklift at work, and that because very uncomfortable to him Tuesday night. By Wednesday afternoon, the right side of his scrotum was swollen to about twice the size of the left side, and he was able to squeeze put out of two different locations. We went to the ER Thursday morning. He was (again) diagnosed with “cellulitis”, given an injection of antibiotic, and told to follow up with our family physician the next day.
We did that yesterday. Our doctor put him on Cipro for two weeks and has him off work (because of the extreme pain he’s enduring) until at least Monday night. He goes back to our doctor Monday. At that time, I will ask about MRSA, since we only found out about it AFTER our visit to the doctor’s office yesterday.
After reading what I have, I’m scared that Richard has MRSA because of his long-standing history of boils and cysts, along with the medical problems he’s had in the 13 years we’ve been married. I will send updates as we find out more about his condition.
Rovens // Feb 8, 2007 at 9:19 pm
I think my sister has MRSA, she had gallbladder surgery 3 weeks ago and has developed a nasty staph infection. Her head has blown up like a balloon, her eyes swollen shut and she has erupted boils all along her scalp and side of her face.
She does not have medical insurance, I have taken her to emegency twice, only to be sent home with a perscription of a different antibiotic than the last. It is frustrating as I am trying to find out how to care for the boils and what to do to avoid contaminaation myself andd my family.
No one at the hosptals will tell me how contagious this disease is…they just say to wash your hands. I am scared for my family and of course for my sister. What if it doesn’t go away ?
Kelly // Feb 9, 2007 at 1:30 pm
My husband got MRSA in July ‘06 and ha had three flair ups. This disease never goes away.
He is just getting over it right now. They did not give him the right antibiotics the first time and were packing the drain hole with neosporin, which made it worse. Then they did better testing and found that the best antibiotic to treat his type was SMZ/TMP DS 800-160. We drain the wound several times a day by pushing on the skin around the hole. Wear gloves and throw all tissues, gloves ect away int the outside trash when you are done. We clean the drain site with iodine and keep it bandaged. My nine year old son and I have not gotten this infection, despite close contact with my husband. We do wash our hands often and change the sheets often and keep the bathrooms clean. I did not know until this last flare up that it would never go away. He must tell all doctors and facilities that treat him for anything that he has mrsa. Cellulitis is another term that is used when it is in the tissue. They also called it a lung abcess.
Many people have this germ on them, but not everyone gets it. Children and old people and immunosuppresed people get it the most.
To Ravens; take your sister back to the doctor. If she looks that bad, she is very ill and this is serious. Contact your local disease center to see if they have suggestions for help in treatment. The antibiotics my husband is taking were only $18.00 at Target. Warm showers relieve some pain and help the wound drain. Good Luck
Michelle Amsterdam // Feb 10, 2007 at 7:33 pm
I was very interested reading the experiences that other people had with mrsa. I got it as a result of gallbladder surgery. The mrsa developed on the wound. Approximately 7 days after the surgery I was diagnosed. I remained in the hospital for about a month and still in a very ill condition was discharged to a skilled nursing home facility. I was too ill to remain there and was sent to another hospital where I was immediately diagnosed with sepsis, acute kidney failure, heart, liver and lung malfunctions and was dehydated , and had peritonitis. This all happened when the mrsa became a systemic infection causing organ shutdown.
Today I have permanent damage to my heart, kidneys and lungs. I am unable to find a malpractice attorney as in the state of Florida you have to be dead practically to win. My surgeon delayed the treatment that I needed for the sepsis. Although I had all the syptoms of the mrsa and sepsis they were not investigated. As in all infections quick intervention with the proper antibiotics is crucial for survival. I wish you all well and hope that we never hear the word mrsa again.
Michelle
Martha Noah // Feb 12, 2007 at 12:26 pm
I just found this website today. I was just diagnosed with MRSA this month and spent a week in the hopsital and then two weeks on IV’s with at home. I was healthy and active prior to coming down with this! Had it not been for my sister taking me to the ER the night of Jan. 15th I was told I could’ve lost my leg and may have died. I had no idea how serious it was. When it first appeard as a small red spot on my thigh it just itched and then the next day it became very sore and grew the size of a softball. The doctor I went to said it was an ingrown hair without even touching it or bairly looking at it and sent me home with antibiotics and to come back two days later. The next day I awoke to it even bigger and draining and went to a different doctor (as I was not in my home town) and she took a culture and blood work and told me to stay off of it and to be back the next morning. But by that evening I couldn’t walk on it and my sister took me in to the ER. They lanced it and you know the rest. It has been a long recovery. I am now trying to learn all I can because I have no idea how I contacted this. I have always practiced good hygiene and take care of myself so I don’t know what I can do. HELP!!!!
Cindy // Feb 16, 2007 at 11:36 pm
First, let me say my prayers are with everyone affected and/or afflicted by this bacteria. I became acquainted with MRSA in Dec ‘06, after one of my foster daughters had a nasty “spider bite” on her leg. Using what I thought were safe enough precautions, I would soak a hot cloth on her bite, then squeeze the sore to drain, then bandage it with an antibiotic cream. I practiced what I considered hygenic practices - I wouldn’t touch the drainage and would wash my hands with an antibacterial soap afterwards. After three days, I could feel pustules literally “popping” under the skin when I would squeeze it. I took her to the doctor’s and I first learned of MRSA. She was put on antibiotics and it quickly cleared up. (Unbeknownst to me at the time, her father had it a few months previously).
Fast forward to this week, Feb 12th, and I get what I thought was a pimple on my butt (oh, the indignities!). After a day, it became infected, quite swollen (about the circumference of a tangerine) and very hot! Then I thought, okay, a spider bite (but on my butt??), so I treated it with an antibiotic ointment. Three days later (yesterday) and it hasn’t gotten better, MRSA flashed through my mind so I made an appointment with our doctor. Today I had the pleasure of having my butt numbed, lanced, irrigated and drained, then packed - MRSA has returned! Now I get to look forward to 3-4 weeks of repeated lancings, irrigations and packings until they ensure it is “gone.”
My suggestion to all: If you are in contact with someone with MRSA or assisting in their treatment, continue to check yourself and everyone else VERY carefully - do not become complacent. There appears to be a long gestation for this strain/bacteria. Even doctors are not sure all the ways this is passed and how long it can gestate in our bodies. Some recent literature has suggested that even skin to skin contact may pass it - the truth is that there is just not enough research to date. So I would suggest caution to everyone who has been exposed in any way to this bacteria - and my best wishes!
Sandra // Mar 10, 2007 at 12:46 am
My husband died of a MRSA that became VRE Endocarditis. The hospital never mentioned that he had an MRSA, he was discharged to a nursing home where he could have infected older people who lived there.
The discharge summary said nothing about MRSA nor that he may still be infected, although the hospital never followed up - the last culture showed that the MRSA was still there and had moved into his blood stream, but no further cultures were done after a second round of Linezolid. When it was too late, he was admitted to another hospital and they said that the Linezolid was ’static’ and switched him to Daptomycin. His stay in the hospital was prolonged by nurses who were allowed to sedate him causing his respiratory system to be severely depressed. At one point it was thought that my husband was brain dead.
He wasn’t, he was over sedated. Once he was allowed to awaken, it took another month for him to work the sedatives out of his system. I believe he got the ‘colonization of staph’ as we were told, from a tracheal tube that was too small allowing leaking around the edges.
We were told that he would not be allowed to move out of the ICU until his infection was under control, so when he was moved, we assumed it had been taken care of.
No attorney will take a case in the State of Florida if the patient is low income, or older due to the cap on punitive damages. The cost for expert witnesses is more than you can hope to recover. I think it stinks.
I am trying to find someone who can get me a copy of a notice of intent to file, so I can do it Pro Se. (myself). I think the hospital needs to be put on notice, my husband isnt’ the only patient released from that hospital with a deadly infection.
God Bless you all.
Michelle Amsterdam // Mar 10, 2007 at 12:06 pm
Hi Sandra,
I also live in Florida. You probably already read my account of the experience I had with MRSA and the resulting sepsis. MDS seem not to be too educated about sepsis and importance of quick diagnosis and treatment of this potentially deadly disease. I laid in a hospital bed with all the symptoms of sepsis and tests results showing that my kidneys were malfunctioning and no one did anything.
Our legal system has made it impossible to sue MDS and hospitals for negligence. I have no idea why MDS in Florida need malpractice insurance as they win 80 to 90% of the cases that do go before a jury. We, the innocent victims of another’s negligence have no possibility to recieve compensation . Lawyers will only take cases that they are 100% sure of winning. MDS walk away from their errors and no one is ever held accountable for either the loss of life or the damages, pain and suffering that impacted the lives of those who had faith in their surgeons..
Lawyers twist facts and I think that it is impossible to get the entire accurate account of what actually transpired in a hospital. Charts and hospital records have several errors and omissions which make it impossible to get to the truth.
The entire system is awful. Hospitals are the main source of the MRSA infection. Nurses could be carriers and unclean conditions cause the infection. MRSA can be lurking in the rooms and floors as well as the air. Perhaps the first thing that should be done to stop this needless epidemic of MRSA is to start at the source, the hosptial itself. Do nurses and staff actually cover their bodies and faces when treating a MRSA patient.? I never remember my surgeon wearing the appropriate hospital garb when treating me. They also can carry the disease from one patient to another. This is a complex problem that certainly needs solutions.
I am unable to find an attorney to take my case. If we loose I would be held responsible for the surgeon’s court costs and legal expenses. This makes it impossible for people who do not have the funds to pay in case they loose and also deters many people who might have viable cases from suing.
Certainly in the case of malpractice tort law we the people of the United States are not equal. There is no justice or equality under the current statutes that protect our rights. We the citizens have no chance of having our cases heard nor receiving the appropriate compensation for condtions that we did not cause. I still find this so hard to comprehend that all this is happening in the land of the free.
Michelle
Andy // Mar 14, 2007 at 12:43 am
Wow great site. I thought I was alone since a lot of people gave me a confused look when I said I had MRSA. Only nurses and a few select that I encounter knew what I was talking about.
Well, I’m a Police officer and a plain cloths undercover for about 4 years.(no problems then). I can only make educated guesses on how I got MRSA.
I went back to uniform about a year ago, actually March 17th 2006. Going back to uniform we had since changed the type pants we wear and I beliveve it may have caused irritation on my rear end. Two cyst/boils followed on either side. I never had something like this before so of course I get the in-grown hair diagnosis. But they are so big they have to get removed in the hospital and not an office visit. I’ll take a bullet before I go through that pain or recoverey ever again. Not only humiliating but painful for days and weeks until healed. Now I can’t be sure but I used the toilet at the Police station. Call me whimpy but usually a toilet paper birds nest is made prior to use of any public toilet but this guy had one too many cups that day and when you gotta go. Well there was no time.
Now the combination of the pants irritating and the use of the bathroom….is it possible to get it from a toilet seat? Unsure? But about two weeks later the two bumps appeared one within a day of the other. Then my wife gets boil/cyst on her rear end after my surgery while mine were draining/healing. The doctors are still calling it and in grown hair. Hello! But doesn’t this sound like something else since we both have the same thing/symptoms? Nope, MRSA not ever mentioned. Well fortunately she had it removed in the office and wasn’t as bad. We have matching scars.
Fast forward not very long after surgery. I get what appears to be two then three pimples on the top of my thigh and irritation in the front of the inside of my nose.Nose was swollen and red and painful! What in the world is going on with me!? Get to the hospital and they lance the pimple on my leg that has swollen. Now this was a Physicians assistant who treated me and confidently without a blink said “Oh this looks like MRSA”. Now what happen to all the doctors prior to this? Or how about a warning letting me know that it is a catching thing. After a 3 day stay in the hospital, which by the way have never been in a hospital overnight in my life up till now, I was filled with Clendomycin (unsure spelling) through an IV. Then for 5 days reporting for a 40 min IV hook up for the same stuff.
Fast forward three weeks later. Precautions already in place and applied for disinfecting the house and cleaning routines such as clorahexydyne scrubs, purchase of all white towels and linens so everything gets washed in hot water and bleached etc,etc.
My 6 y/o son has a pinple on his forearm. Now we make the bee line to the infectious disease doctor who diagnosis him with, yep you guessed it, MRSA! He put him on a lower form of medicine but it ended with mycin all the same. He was eventually tested and Thank God a clean bill. Fast forward to now. One week ago a experienced a sore in my nose on the right side near the back that eventually swelled, pimple with head on the inside. Immediately went to the doctor and tested but this time I knew and insisted on the MRSA test. Well here we go again…MRSA. Now I put the bactriban ointment inside my nose. It is something like neosporan for those who aren’t familiar. It’s better and healed within three days (start to finish) but I am going to the infectious disease tomorrow so we shall see.
My neighbor works for B Braun. He told me that he would bet that I got the MRSA from the hospital when the boils were removed and not from the toilet. He also said that certain strains can be identified and trace to said origin. They do that at B Braun.
So the jury is out where this came from or how I got it. We are all healthy people, wife and I in our mid 30’s. This whole episode has got me wondering what else could be wrong?
I wish anyone who has to deal with this horrible infection the best of luck and can not stress to take every precaution to prevent it! I’ll let you know how the rest of it goes.
Andy
PS has anyone ever heard of hives on the face as a symptom from MRSA? Come and go next day.
Martha Noah // Mar 16, 2007 at 8:07 pm
I am courious as to how anyone can follow MRSA back to its source? If anyone has the know how to this please let me know. I would be interested in how I contacted it since I wasn’t around anyone with it or in a hospital or nursing home. I did talk with a nurse who seemed pretty knowledgeable on MRSA and he said in was an autoimmune system type virus. So apparently my immune system was very low at the time it attacked me. I was pretty run down at the time but didn’t realize it then. All I know it has been 2 months now and I am still trying to get my strength back. Knock on wood no more outbreaks. My prayers go out to all of you still fighting it, it is nasty stuff. I was told that only Vancomyocin (IV only)was the only antibiotic that fought it. So I am curious as to all the other antibiotics mentioned.
Sandra // Mar 16, 2007 at 10:31 pm
There are a number of antibiotics that can be used on MRSA and there are a number of different forms of this infection. My husband’s was the same one that lives on people’s skin. That normally isn’t a problem, unless it gets into your body through a cut or some other means. Once there, it can mutate and depending on how and where it is located, can be deadly.
MRSA is also bad in that it can help other infections mutate and attack. This is how the Endocarditis eventually overtook my husband. Shand’s switched him to Daptomycin but by the time we got there it was too late. Linezolid, or Zyvox (brand name) is widely used for MRSA infections. I have seen a documentary on hospital infections and MRSA are very difficult to get rid of, if you ever do.
God bless all of you who are still suffering out there. Be sure that you wash your hands a lot. That seems to be the easiest way for it to be passed around.
Jeanne // Mar 17, 2007 at 11:07 am
my brother has mrsa. he is in morton plant northbay in new port richey florida. he has been going to this ER since Jan. each time they sent him home with Keflex. He had as many as 7 boils at one time and they would not culture it. Once we suspected MRSA (from an article I just happened to read) I begged him to go back to the ER (he’s uninsured) and demand a culture. They would not do it. Finally last week they admitted him because his back is a huge open wound now. he’s also type II diabetes and the blood sugar was 394 (high). I live in NJ so it’s very difficult and frustrating to try to help him. I find it interesting all the posts I read about Fla and the mrsa infections there. It’s unbelievable, but morton plant hospital is still sending people away with Keflex and refusing to culture them. An acquaintence of my brother, a pregnant young woman was rejected two nights ago. She tried to explain about my brother’s mrsa diagnosis and her recurrent boils and the possibility that she has mrsa. They would not culture!!!! she is unisured. I begged my brother to speak with this girl and get her to go to a dr. right away. He’s still in the hospital on vancomycin and insulin drip. I want to help him recover when he leaves. I’m reading tons of stuff about de-colonizing the home and trying to counsel him & his girlfriend on what to do. It seems impossible to rid yourself of this and the more I read the more afraid I become. they also have a dog, and in speaking with a nurse she relayed an incident where the dog kept reinfecting a family. I’m afraid the dog may carry it…..any info on cleansing a dog?
Jeanne // Mar 17, 2007 at 11:16 am
Just another comment I failed to mention: When the ER refused to culture my brother’s sores stating that “we know what it is, we don’t need to culture it” I called the infectious disease dept. that works with morton plant & 2 other hospitals in the area and they said that MRSA was not on their list of infectious disease!!! Also, they pulled up my brother’s history of ER visits and said to me that he didn’t test positive for staph. I had to gain control of myself and tell the woman that was because the ER refused to take a culture!! That was the whole reason I called, to find out why the ER would not culture him! She was useless, put me in touch with the hospital administrators office which promised an investigation which has amounted to nothing and will not return phone calls. What about a class action lawsuit—this needs to be addressed, they need to start taking this seriously. I don’t want money I want MRSA to be on the list of infectious disease and I want ER to culture skin boils before they create even more resistant strains & serious illness by treating it with Keflex!!!! I am angry
Sandra // Mar 17, 2007 at 4:35 pm
I would love to find an attorney with enough guts to file a class action suit on behalf of all of the patients who are no longer able to have their day in court. Also, anyone out there can contact the CDC - they have information on MRSA’s and you can contact them regarding your particular problems. Send a complaint to your local Health Department. You will have to file for each individual and facility you have a complaint against.
Michelle Amsterdam // Mar 17, 2007 at 5:52 pm
HI Everyone again,
Perhaps there is an attorney out there who has also suffered from MRSA or sepsis. All of these infections that are hospital aquired need to be seriously investigated and proper measures taken to prevent them. Things certainly do happen which is the MDS excuse but things should not happen and if those who cause them are held accountable perhaps we will see the eradication of this terrible infection.
I spoke to someone today who lost her mother to MRSA and sepsis last year. She went into the hosptial for routine surgery and succombed to this infection. They can’t find a lawyer in Florida to represent them. I find this totally unbelievable. Something MUST be done to protect our rights.
Michelle
Sandra // Mar 17, 2007 at 8:24 pm
Infections caught in the hospital are not considered malpractice. Unfortunately it is actually considered a ‘risk’ of being hospitalized. The only way to find an attorney to handle these cases, for now, is to prove that your stay was extended due to their negligence.
There has been some interest in trying to prove that MRSAs are not inevitable, but can be minimized by using certain criteria that has already been proven in a number of hospitals.
MRSA lives on the skin of many people, and there is a veterans hospital in PA that tests every patient upon admission for Staph Epidermis. Those patients are secluded away from others and the nurses are following strict instructions on how to clean themselves and their patients as well as the rooms and instruments used.
The results are that their infections rates have dropped significantly. If we were to find an attorney who wants to take this on, he would have to show that it is possible to avoid many of these infections, therefore it is no longer an ‘acceptable risk’ of hospitalization.
If there are any such attorneys reading this, we could use some help here. I am setting up a website about my husbands case. When it is up and running, I will post it here so that we can make an attempt to change the way hospitals treat us.
God bless.
Michelle Amsterdam // Mar 17, 2007 at 11:13 pm
HI Sandra and everyone,
I know that MRSA is not grounds for medical malpractice. I was ill in a hospital and was not diagnosed with sepsis which is a blood infection and my organs did shut down.The antibiotics that are used to treat sepsis are different than the ones utilized to treat MRSA. In my situation I was discharged from the hospital when my bile duct leak stopped draining. No medical professionals read the charts and diagnosed my septic. infection. I was released still with MRSA, sepsis, kidney failure, peritonitis, dehydration, temperature and lung disease. The medical profession seem not to be knowledgable about these infectious diseases that are running rampant in our hospitals. It seems as though no one cares until it affects their lives or a love ones.
Michelle
Brandy // Mar 21, 2007 at 1:57 pm
Not all MRSA cases are hospital-based, nor from being in a gym. My 34 YO husband ended up with permanent damage to his right leg due to MRSA which had ’stayed’ in the room he occupied when the prior occupant, another contractor at one of the bases in Germany, left. The prior contractor had an infected leg, too, blamed it on a bug bite that wouldn’t heal, until the medics (British, who are familiar with MRSA more than we are) recognized it for what it was and started treating him. My husband’s superiors were notified of this, but did nothing. No warnings for hygiene, no extra spritz bottles with bleach and water, no changing of bedspreads, or mattresses, just ‘fresh’ linens’. My husband contracted the disease through a small scratch on his hand and had to be flown back to the States. He almost died.
He still cannot work, BUT, according to his union attorneys, his ‘bosses’ are responsible since they are required to provide a safe environment for him to work in, and knowledge of MRSA existing in that very site and doing nothing about it constitutes neglience.
You need to be persistent. Many attorneys, particularly malpractice and union attorneys, are becoming more and more aware of MRSA outside of the hospital environment, and since the prevention of it (really, just simple cleaning and hygiene) is so doable, ignoring it is pure neglience.
Ron // Apr 5, 2007 at 1:51 pm
My name is Ron and I had MRSA back in 2005, I recently went into urgent care for an abcess and let them know about my 2 year ago visit. This web-site is answard prayer. I want to become part of the charge. How may I do that?
Sincerely,
Ron
MarthaNoah // Apr 8, 2007 at 8:16 am
Since my last writing I have gone in for a complete physical and found out because of my MRSA infection that my it shut my thyroid down and now am on medication for it. I am now feeling alot better. But reading and hearing from all of you I feel lucky with them treatment I received from the second doctor and the hospital staff I had gone too. At least so far!! I have been told that I do have a 100% chance of this happening again if I am not careful with a wound. I still get tired easily and find myself wondering where and how I got this horrible infection. All I know is with some of the care that is not being given with this something needs to be done to the medical field. It is malpractice, I reported the first doctor I went to on misdiagnosing it as an ingrone hair. If I had listened to him and followed his advice I would be dead today!! I doubt anything will come of it but at least it is on record that he is reported and his name is out there. So at least do that don’t give up. This is a wonderful site something leads us all here so maybe someday something will be done!
saikumar.s // Apr 13, 2007 at 5:21 am
Hi, I recently lost my dearest Mother due to septicimia . In Dec 2006 she got a wound in right Big Toe (Right Leg) . Though that wound was healed after having 5 - 6 rounds of visit to a near by Diabetes Hospital. By December End another wound had occurred just on adjacent area in Right Leg Big Toe itself . For that also we were visiting the Nearby Diabetes Hospital almost twice a week , the doctor used to graft the perpheral infections,puss,blood and used to do dressing . He started antibiotics somewhere in mid of Jan. He used to tell ” lets avoid amputation of toe so Iam doing this”. This went on upto March 2007 when on 6 th March midnight suddenly My Mother woke up with huge and severe Breathlessness . She was admitted to Hospital . There she was ok for around 4 days, But the Breathing started deteriorating and finally doctors told that she had Multiple Organ Failure,Acute Renal Failure and she was put on ventilator, sedatives etc. Her body was tapped on both left and right sides to drain out the pleural fluids . She was on dialysis for nearly a week. And after all this Non sense
Doctors did a Lung Biopsy . The Biopsy results revealed that There were untreatable Viruses in the lungs. By around March 25th they weaned here out of ventilator My mother insisted on going back to home she started desperately protesting in ICU. She could not talk as on March 20 she under went a tracheostomy .
Finally she was in a very bad condition with her body full of swelling . Doctor told she maintained O2 saturation of around 90 and told she needs ICU care for an unpredictable period as her body was not responding to medicines, But we took her home as she started going to Coma and her last desire was to go back to Own House. So we brought her home on 27 th March 2007 at around 12 pm , and she finally ,calmy reached God at 4:55 pm on the same day.
She was a Diabetic since past 18 years , She wa 63 when she passed away.
She was the dearest person on earth to me . I used to think if at all I lived on earth it was only for my Mom and Dad. But Now Mom is no more and I have to take care of my Dad who is also as sweet as my Mom. But still whereever i go , I feel the absence of my Dear Mother.
Bret // Apr 23, 2007 at 10:31 pm
I was recently diagnosed with MRSA. I have a boil on my buttock that has been there for 2 weeks, I am just now able to sit in a chair for more than 1 minute at a time. This is my 3rd “boil” type illness in the past 4 months. I had a couple of boils on my other buttock in January- my family doctor cut + tried to drain them and put me on antibiotics. I finally got better about 3 weeks later. Then in mid-march I got a big boil on my neck- the whole side of my face was swollen and sore. I went back to the doctor, got more antibiotics and allowed this one to burst and heal on it’s own (no cutting this time).
I finally wised up a bit this time and told the Dr that I wanted this outbreak cultured and sure enough it was MRSA. My wife had a similar outbreak about 2 months ago, but they cultured hers and said it was NOT MRSA- but I’m not convinced.
I’m on a sulfa-based oral antibiotic, and I’m supposed to go back to the Dr after that is finished. I only hope we can confirm that it gets rid of the MRSA- I cannot afford to be bedridden for 7-10 days at a time with another outbreak and I certainly worry about passing it to my 4 year old son and/or my wife.
Sad thing is, my Grandmother contracted MRSA 10 years ago when she was hospitalized with a broken hip- and it eventually killed her. The infection moved to her heart muscle and surrounding blood vessels and killed her. I’m a relatively healthy 43 y.o. man, but it’s very scary to think about what can happen.
Sandra // Apr 25, 2007 at 10:23 pm
I wrote letters to all of my reps, the governor, president Bush and the hospital in Tennessee that owns the hospital where my husband was infected. I got a response from two of my reps, who did not read what I sent very well, but at least the did respond. The governor sent my 7 page complaint to ACHA - the organization that oversees hospitals and such. I got a letter today telling me that Gov. Christ’s office had sent my information to them and that they entered it and is investigating.
The Risk Manager at the hospital called me - even though I never sent them a copy of my letter. She couldn’t answer the question about why my husband was released from the hospital without telling us that he still was infected, and the type of infection he had.
She did say, that if I would sign a paper saying I won’t sue, she would get the doctors to answer questions for me. They are already doing a peer review even though I still have not found an attorney to handle my case. I am now trying to find a copy of a Notice of Intent so that I can file it myself.
My niece worked at this hospital in the Janitorial area and was written up for using too many mop heads while cleaning the patients rooms. She also said that they refuse to use the correct disinfectants, the ones they use do not work. She was written up another time for using Clorox. The nurse got some for her when a patient was taken to surgery after being admitted with Strep Throat and kept getting worse.
Bleach does work and since most hospitals haven’t used it in some time, perhaps it is time to bring it back.
Senator Finestein’s office sent me a note that she is only accepting complaints from people in her state, however she is voting against the proposed $250,000 national caps on non-economic damages - pain and suffering etc. Hooray for her.
These infections ARE avoidable and that has been proven in a number of hospitals. I hope that our government will finally start enforcing a stronger requirement to irradicate these infections.
thanks for a place to vent. My husband has been gone for almost two years and I miss him very much.
Michelle Amsterdam // Apr 28, 2007 at 9:56 am
Hi everyone again,
My statute of limitations is quickly approaching and my frustration seems to be elavating daily. Sandy, I just read your recent comments and I never thought about that my prolonged hospital stay resulted from the initial negligence. This could be an interesting twist on the economics of my case. Lawyers in Florida have said that the money my insurance covered far exceeds the amount that I could possibly retrieve if the case is successful. I was also reading an excerpt from a book by Jack Shroder who addressed the attornies suggesting that they sue everyone involved in the case, namely, MDS, nurses, and the hospitals.
I would file myself but know that with my lack of legal and medical expertise I would be slaughtered and loose even more money.
PLEASE everyone—lets find a lawyer quickly who will stand up for us finally.
Michelle
Cheyanne // Apr 30, 2007 at 9:16 am
I live in South Florida and have found a lawyer that has taken my case. I feel he took the case because I am able to pinpoint the place where we were infected. I talked to may lawyers, but only one took it. We are going to mediation in June. I’ll let you know what happens.
Michelle Amsterdam // Apr 30, 2007 at 10:49 am
HI Cheyanne,
PLEASE can I have the name of your attorney? I am desperately seeking legal representation and must secure it before June 21st when the statute of limitations runs out. My email address is masterdam@juno.com. Thank you very much,
Michelle
Michelle Amsterdam // Apr 30, 2007 at 11:00 am
HI,
I am having trouble leaving a message here today. I would appreciate if Cheyanne would kindly give me the name of her attorney in South Florida. I am DESPERATE!
Cheyanne // Apr 30, 2007 at 11:22 am
Michelle,
I sent you email.
TERRI // May 9, 2007 at 9:25 am
My husband has had several “outbreaks”, lancing & packings, cultures and lots and lots of pain. I am now trying to compile of list of dates and doctors to see just how many he has had.
We can not pin point any exact time this exposure happened….or any Dr that agrees the type of medicine that is best used.
One thing I do know for sure is that each time it seems to get worse, and affects more areas (on the inside) of his body.
I think the Infectious Disease Dept of each State needs to take a closer look at this and take it seriously.
Once I compile my list, I will keep it and take it to the next Dr till we find someone that truely knows about this and hopefully cure this for good. ( I can share this list if anyone is interested)
And I will keep a journal of outbreaks, where, how bad and the Dr’s and medicines used.
Email tmcdaniel@crmchealth.org
V Wagner // May 25, 2007 at 10:02 am
My son was a US Marine. We got a call about our perfectly healthy 18 year old on a Friday informing us he was in the hospital with what they thought pneumonia. Saturday the call escalated to a lung tap and move into ICU and by Sunday we were told it would be a good idea to get the family together. It was a definite possibility that he would not survive the night. To make a very long and terrifying story short as possible, he did fight it but lost half of one lung, was diagnosed with staphylococcus saccharalyticus, CA-MRSA, pseudomonis, acute renal failure, blood infection, and on and on. He lost his career in the USMC which was his life long dream - to keep his country and his family safe and free…he continues to suffer from outbreaks of MRSA as does the rest of our family. Sadly, no one will confirm or agree that all of our outbreaks have anything to do with his initial diagnosis. My oldest son just went through several weeks of very strong medication after having three very large and nasty areas surgically removed. I have read and read about this horrible disease and am very excited to have found other families that can share information. When I see an area, I can readily identify MRSA - but no one seems to listen when I call ahead to warn them about people in waiting rooms who could potentially be exposed. It seems so widespread but seems that healthcare professionals still don’t GET it! It’s a terrible problem and I cannot understand why there are not records kept, follow up with family outbreaks, etc. My son is now 21 and doing most things that he wants to do but will be on disability for his lifetime after his medical separation from the USMC. The doctors at the Naval Medical Center certainly saved his life and I am forever grateful. They did state quite clearly that if it hadn’t been for the excellent condition he was in, that he would never have survived. He is my FIGHTER. But, the cyle remains within our family both in the home and family members living outside our home. I would love any and all information that anyone can offer on how to stop this horrible intruder in our home!!!
Thank you.
Rovena // May 25, 2007 at 12:13 pm
Hi V.
Since my sister was diagnosed early February…I know 4 other friends who have contracted MRSA independently…One friend got mugged in NY and contracted it at the hospital there, another friend spent the weekend in Jail in Los Angeles sand my Nephew (13) got it from the Gym in Orange County. Personally, I do not have any friends who have HIV - although I know quite a few stereotypical candidates…what this tells me is that this disease is spreading like wildfire. When I was in UK last Xmas, I kept hearing about the “Superbug” on the news - I thought it was a bird flu or something, that is until my sister got sick. 3000 people a year DIE in the UK from MRSA. I think the population there is equivelent to CA. What does that tell you? This is a HUGE health problem - but Dick Cheney and friends do not have shares in “the cure” like they have in “Bird Flu”, since there is no cure- there is no profit for the powers that be!
That is why the News is not carrying the stories.
Since MRSA is related to the scary “flesh eating bacteria” you’d think the Fear Mongers would be all over it!
Thanks for letting me rant
Rovena
Suzanne in Georgia // Jun 4, 2007 at 10:55 pm
My husband is still in the hospital’s rehab center, where he is recovering from brain surgery and the MRSA he contracted there, along with 3 other life-threatening diseases. He has lost much of his cognitive functioning, and is now relarning to eat, walk, talk, and generally function. He had surgery April 12, and was supposed to be there a week. Four days after surgery, he was moving and talking well, but then contracted MRSA, another staph infection, ventriculitis, and pseudomonas. Thank you for this forum, I want to learn all I can about this, and how it will affect our lives. Can my husband have radiation for cancer now, or is that option over since he has MRSA? He is in isolation at rehab, but has been off the anti-biotic for a couple of weeks now.
Thanks.
Sandra // Jun 4, 2007 at 11:24 pm
I found a website today while doing some research. I happened to be looking for VRE Endocarditis and MRSA infections and came across several good websites that were written some time ago listing a ‘multiple drug’ regimen that has been useful in treating MRSA and VRE.
Daptomycin is one of the drugs that seems to work for some. I am writing my own lawsuit and am about to file it with the Clerk. I figured what do I have to lose. I can’t get an expert witness so I am basing it on the fact that we were not told that my husband had an MRSA when he was discharged from the first hospital, and we assumed he was getting better.
I miss my best friend and my love, and I don’t think it is fair for anyone to keep you from getting help for a problem they were not able to handle. They never even ran any final cultures to see if the antibiotic worked. Zyvox or Linezolid does not work very well.
Wish me luck. I will let you all know what happened.
Suzanne, where is your husband’s infection located - at his surgery site or somewhere else?
These can occur anywhere that a picc line or catheter is inserted. My husbands first dialysis access was directly into his left ventrical, which is where the first ‘vegetation’ showed up. Keep talking to his doctors and make them explain everything to you. If they don’t like it too bad, that’s their job.
You have the right to know and to participate in diagnosis and treatement, or if you chose - not to have treatment.
God Bless you, keep us posted.
Sandra // Jun 4, 2007 at 11:38 pm
Suzanne, you need to ask the doctor what type of Pseudonomas he has. There are a number of different ones and can affect a lot of different parts of his system. The ventriculitis is an inflamation of the ventricles and is also an infection. I had a friend who told me to take a notebook with me and to ask the doctors questions and write the answers down, because it would be easier to remember later.
I did that, but I could never track down any of the doctors and we didn’t have our own doctor to check in on Al. I had a hard time for three months trying to find out anything and no one would talk to me. So, it might not be in your makeup but you need to get stern and make the doctors tell you exactly what you are dealing with.
Please let me know what happens. My email address is kitchelslk@yahoo.com if you want to talk to someone.
God Bless
Jessica // Jun 25, 2007 at 1:02 pm
I just returned from south Florida, having visited my daughter who has MRSA. She Was hospitalised in May for celulitis, which was treated with IV antibiotics but no one mentioned MRSA. A week or so ago she noticed a boil on her inner thigh she was seen at the ER of a large hospital inWPB where she was released with a RX of antibiotice. The boil continued to grow and she could hardly walk an ER at another hospital diagnosed a spider bite, lanced, and packed it and she has had some improvement. Thay also gave her an IM injection of antibiotics. She asked about MRSA because her boyfriend has it but no one will give her any information. I don’t think they even cultured the wound. This has been extremely frustrating. he is also without health insurance and the hospitals can’t be bothered. It has also come to my attention that MRSA is common among drug addicts particularlly IV users.
Cathy // Jun 26, 2007 at 10:05 am
I had one boil the first time and found out after going to the Dr. that it was Mrsa. I had NO IDEA what that was. It just came out of the blue. It was a bit painful when they lanced it and squeezed, and all that. I was a bit scared, why did I get this? Will it come back? Will I spread it to others? It came back not too long after the first one, on the side of my hip/upper leg.. again to the Dr. to do the same procedure. Then noticed another .. didnt end up going in, think it healed itself. Now i sense i might be getting another in a ‘private’ area..WHAT AM I GOING TO DO ? How do I deal with this and all the reddish scars that it leaves on my fair skinned body? I do not want to have this. No one does. And, I do not know if it will get worse, and worse, will i end up in a hospital one day? Or will it just be these random infections here and there, showing up whereever and whenever they choose to ? IS THERE anything at all that someone can take or do to help eliminate or prevent getting MRSA infections/outbreaks? I am so confused and feel like my body is being overtaken by this nasty thing. I dont want it to be affecting my life, but what is… is..
I just need to know more ‘facts’ and maybe any encouragement, cause I am a bit scared. And even tho the Doctors seem to be doing their best…. I just want to know all I can, before its too late. Cathy
Lisa R. // Jun 29, 2007 at 7:18 pm
Hi the other day I noticed a small sore on my
6 months old bottom I thought it may have been a flea bite and today it was hot to touch and I took her to doctor he said it was mrsa,I told him a few months earlier that my boyfriend had it
and he said yeah that he was for certain it was mrsa,he lanced her bottom Iwas a wreck,I still
am feeling pretty bad,does it ever go away forever??she is on an antibiotic called cleocin
what should I do??if there is any advice please let me know I am scarred for my daughter.
Sandra // Jun 30, 2007 at 11:05 pm
Lisa, be sure to watch for diarrya, it is a side effect and can show up after the meds have been discontinued. It is a side effect of most of these types of antibiotics, so just make sure that if she has any reactions you report it immediately to your doctor.
Keep everything clean, and throw any bandages in a separate bag for disposal. If you have them I would use latex gloves when changing the dressings. This will help minimize any exposure to you and re-exposure to her.
Check with your pharmacy and ask if there is something that can be used to clean her with. I know this is frightening, but keep calm and watch her. Be sure that your boyfriend has had a clean bill of health also. According to the Health Department you need three clean cultures before you can be considered clear.
Even then, you can get it back. Use the internet as a tool, you can find all sorts of information to help. I wish I had known all that I know now, my house would have been spotless before my husband came home. Of course, we cleaned but had no idea that he could be spreading it through skin dander. His was not like the one you are dealing with, however, his was in his bloodstream.
God bless, and keep in touch. If you need someone to talk to my email address is:
kitchelslk@yahoo.com
Sandy
Sandra // Jun 30, 2007 at 11:13 pm
Jessica, I am so sorry that you are having to go through this. I find it interesting that there are doctors and hospitals who have managed to eradicate nearly all of the ’superbugs’ from their hospitals, and we are still hearing from others that ‘this is a normal risk for hospitalization’. I for one, don’t buy it. I think it is entirely improper for any doctor not to follow up on a potentially damaging infection, especially if he/she knows that they have been exposed.
If you can, I would demand that they culture her wound. They probably think it will raise their infection status. If they don’t, it certainly will. This is very contagious and if not cleaned properly her room could infect a number of patients and even visitors.
God Bless, and let us know what happens.
Emily // Jul 2, 2007 at 5:17 am
WOW.
I am so glad I found this site!
I should be sleeping, but I couldn’t pull myself away from the info I’m learning here.
About 7 months ago I had what I thought was an emerging pimple on my chin. After I squeezed it, in an attempt to pop it, it swelled up, and turned into a boil so large it disfigured my face.
A few weeks later, I had a cluster of 4 or 5 boils crop up in my right armpit AT THE SAME TIME, as well as other ones that showed up on my face. That was a lot of fun.
For seven months now, I’ve been trying to deal with these boils that have been sporadically showing up on my face and in my other armpit.
Besides not having any medical insurance, I suppose the reason that I haven’t gone to a doctor yet, was because of the shame I’ve felt, thinking that the reason I’m getting these boils is maybe because I don’t eat right/drink more water/take vitamins/work-out, or that the partying and drugs (NEVER-EVER needle-drugs) were finally catching up w/me.
Then the other day I’d mentioned my ‘condition’ to someone, and before I could finish saying the word “boils”, she said, “MRSA”. A friend of hers had had it, and to my relief, he’d never touched drugs in his life. She said that it’s expensive to test for, that doctors don’t generally want to test for it, and that it takes 3 different expensive antibiotics to get rid of it. I jotted down the letters “MRSA”, and just tonight, I followed up, and found this site. Thank goodness.
Several weeks ago, my ex-boyfriend had what he thought could’ve been a spider bite on his back. He went to the doctor who first prescribed Rifampin. He was scheduled for a follow-up 2 days later, but the pain was bad enough that he went back the next day, on a Thursday, where he had the thing lanced, cultured and he was prescribed SMZ/TMP DS antibiotics. The following Monday he went back for a check-up, where the doctor told him that the spider bite was really a staph infection, and then he prescribed Cephalexin.
I doubt that the doctor told him about the seriousness of this… Reason being that after my ex had begun taking 2 of the 3 antibiotics, the swelling and pain eased, and it began to heal. So, he didn’t start taking the Cetaphlexin, doubting a need for it. And when one day I woke up to my face being once again, disfigured due to boils that had taken over, he gave me his Cetaphlexin, saying he didn’t need it, and I was grateful.
The swelling went away and my normal energy level had returned. I was stoked.
Stoked until I felt a bump in my armpit a couple weeks. after I’d finished the Cetaphlexin.
The boils are back.
I’m gonna have to see the doc at the free clinic where I’ll probably have to take an entire day off of work in order to be seen… Unless I take a trip down to Tiajuana and get the drugs there. Either way, I’m going to have to miss work, and it seems I can’t afford to take time off, but, then again, I can’t afford NOT to take that time off. Maybe it’s possible to buy the drugs online- I still have to look.
I can’t help but wonder… Am I spreading it to everyone in the office at work??
Perhaps I should just contact the CDC first, and find out what they think I should do… I really don’t know. I live in a very small studio apt with my cat, and her cat box. Although I clean it daily, I can’t help but wonder if it could’ve been contracted from living in such cramped quarters.
Or could it be from one of the other THREE people I know that are having the same problems as me, and who also HAVEN’T been to the doctor?
So many questions…
So very glad I’ve found this site.
Polly // Jul 11, 2007 at 3:34 pm
I found this site looking for some inservice for the nurses at our small rural hospitalin North Texas. We have seen many cases of “cellulitis” over the last year to eighteen months. We culture every wound that comes in and start our patients on Bactrim DS. Most all of our cultures come back sensitive to Vancomycin and Bactrim DS. We have had a few that had to be hospitalized, but we have had good luck with the Bactrim. What was once a hospital acquired infection is more pervasive throughout our community that at the hospital, and yes, it is scary. We give all our patients that are cultured information sheets to take home that describe the organism and follow up care associated with it. It is a nasty bug indeed and most people come to the ER and Clinic with what they state is a “spider bite”. These have turned out to be MRSA 100% of the time. Forget the bird flu…this will be the next epidemic.. I pray that someday there will be a simple cure for this ugly disease that will eradicate it forever!
Lea in WV // Jul 26, 2007 at 7:47 am
My husband has been having problems with boils for at least two years, & we attribute it to the fact that he has been type II diabetic for more than twenty years now. Up to now these boils have never abcessed, only leaving unsightly scars on his legs and abdomen. We always treated them with a topical antibiotic from our Dr. at the cost of $30.00 a tube. That was until the past few weeks! I guess before I go any furthur I should mention that my husband is an amputee as well! He lost his right arm in a motorcycle accident in 1968 & he has just turned 60 this past June. Well he got a terrible boil on his stump a few weeks ago. Agian this was nastier than any of the past boils and just did not want to heal up, but he managed to get what he calls the seed out & it finally started healing. Still looks OK as of today. Here is where it gets scary, last week he showed me what looked like a little pimple on his index finger. He said it was a little itchy and sore, i told him it looked like a spider bite. I am shocked at everything I have read tonight on MRSA of how many people had that same thought? Within 3 days this small pimple turned into a very angry & nasty looking wound. We tried every country home remedy to draw it out that I, family, & neighbors could think of, from Ichthomal (which is a wonderful drawing salve), moistened bread poultice, & stopped short of putting a piece of salt pork fat that every neighbor here in our very rural mountain community said would definitly work & opted for the ER! The ER Dr would not touch it, insisting we needed to see an orthopedist, but not before being put on a Cipro drip for 2 hours. We caught up with our orthopedist whom we have known for several years due to family BooBoo’s yesterday at another hospital 60 miles away. He informed us that my husband needed to go into surgery to have the site drained, etc… That is where we first heard of MRSA, he told us that it could be MRSA & that they had quite a bit of these cases cropping up in the area? He also informed us that becuase my husband only has one arm he wanted to put him in the hospital and have the Infectious Disease Dr consult as well. I had not been unnerved until I got home last night & started my internet search on what in the heck was this thing called Mersa? Now I am scared at the thought of what could go wrong. The thought of possibly losing even a finger terrifies me. I am comforted by the fact that they did put him on vancymycin (not sure on spelling). They are waiting for a tissue culture to grow , so we won’t know for sure till tomorrow I guess. Thier is one more thing I would like to add that is strange. I had a couple boils in the last 2 weeks that I did manage to treat myself with all these wonderful home remedies. I have not had one in a very long time. One was in my groin area & not very bad at all, but the one under my arm was very painful but did not abcess. So I probably have this as well but unlike my husband I do not have insurance so now if he gets well I will just pass it back to him. The other strange thing is that when we went to our county hospital where the population is only 9000 for the entire county, the person in the bed next to my husband was having a boil that abcessed lanced. We knew who she was & have not seen her in a year. She only lives about 7 miles away as the bird flys. So just how contagious is MRSA ??? Sounds like our little piece of Almost Heaven would be an ideal place for the CDC to start some sort of study to see just how rampant this is since thier are 2 types of MRSA. One being HA-MRSA (hospital) & CA-MRSA that being from perhaps a gym or confined quarters, using someones towel, etc… See my link from the Mayo Clinic
www.mayoclinic.com/health/mrsa/DS00735
I will be including all of you in my prayers for my man & will keep looking back at this site for info. Where did we get this???
With regards to all
Lea
Sandra // Jul 27, 2007 at 8:03 pm
Well I have sent my notice of intent to file negligence lawsuit out. All 15 of the individuals and hospital should have gotten them today.
Next step is to send out unsworn interrogatories, which they have 20 days to answer. I have found out that my husband had developed a Stage 1, AV Block just about a week before he was discharged. The cardiology group that was following his heart problems don’t seem to have been made aware of this. Their website states that infections can cause Endocarditis, and this can be the cause of AV Block. Since that is exactly what my husband died from, it would appear that they had an indication of it prior to his release.
I got a letter to the editor published in the Gainesville Sun but no one else has bothered to carry any information on this problem. People going into a hospital for broken bones, or minor surgery, or to deliver a baby, should never expect to die from an infection.
Something has to be done, and I am trying to organize some sort of group to hound our legislators and the governors office to get this out for the public.
I am considering getting space at any health fair I can find, to pass out information about these infections. Whenever they do diabetes screenings, blood pressure, blood drives etc. Seems to me that until those who haven’t experienced the horrors we have are informed, no one is going to do a thing to change it.
God bless you all. If I can be of any help to anyone, please don’t hesitate to contact me. Even if it is just to talk, and vent. That does help a lot.
Sandy
Terri // Jul 30, 2007 at 11:46 pm
Wow, this is a great site. I’ve got a friend who was recently diagnosed with MRSA which the doctor said developed from a spider bite and she lives in FL. Seems many of you do. I am going to let her know about this site. It’s chock full of a wealth of info.
Anna // Jul 31, 2007 at 7:41 am
I am suffering from MRSA as I speak (er type).. =P
I am from South Mississippi.. Right where Hurricane Katrina hit! I had heard of the regular old “staph” infections before.. the ones you got from an infection after surgery or something!
I even witnessed it at an early age while helping my mother at the VA hospital she worked at! Had to get all scrubbed up and went in to see this patient.. well, his started as a boil on his chest.. and slowly opened up and literally ATE the tissue, muscle and skin away.. so deep I could see this man’s heart beating while he sat and talked with us! And I could see his collarbone plain as day.. vibrating when he laughed! And his lungs expanding when he breathed! It was the most horrible thing I had ever seen!!!! But quite interesting!!
And never really thought much more about it.. unless I was telling the story to a friend of getting to see such an amazing thing..
UNTIL…. After Katrina hit and we came back home.. back to our “normal” lives if you can call it that!
I heard rumors of this “staph” going around here since the hurricane.. with all the people living in such close quarters.. or something being stirred up here on the coast.. and to be honest - it was pretty scary considering what I had seen years ago!
Then.. about 4 or 5 months ago, I noticed pain under my arm when I would put it down.. the pain radiated all down my shoulder and arm.. over my side and chest.. and I felt deep down under the skin was a lump! I didn’t even think “staph”!
So, when it kept getting worse.. I decided to go to the doctor.. who explained to me as if it was just a SIMPLE bacterial infection from shaving.. (no big deal)..said that bacteria from the skin got in where I had shaved.. to take these antibiotics and it should be fine! He said if it came to a head they would lance it, but if not.. it was ok!
So.. I took them.. it got better before it got worse.. these things were the size of 2 golf balls under my armpit! They finally went DOWN after about 10-14 days.. but never went away COMPLETELY! I can STILL feel a little knot there.. small, but it’s still there!
So.. I thought.. no biggie.. i’ll live!
Well, about 3 months ago.. my 15 year old daughter came down with a bug of some kind.. she was vomiting and just feeling rotten for a couple of days! She complained of a small “pimple” just below her nostril.. but to look at it.. it was nothing to be concerned about!
{I didn’t connect it to my experience in any way}
I noticed that pimple come to a large head.. and started turning really dark that day.. we assumed it was a spider bite.. so I took her to the ER!!
THAT WAS HORRIBLE!!!!!!! They informed us it was “STAPH” and said they would have to cut it open.. and break up the core.. and pack it.. and remember.. this is on a teenage girl’s FACE!!!!
he was even talking about - if we weren’t happy with the scar, we could think about plastic surgery later on..
I WAS TERRIFIED! So.. she REALLY had to have been scared!! But she was a trouper!!!
She layed there in the ER and let them numb it and cut it.. broke up the core.. packed it.. and when they were done.. she was just shaking and very nauseated!!!
the cut turned out to be VERY SMALL.. can’t really even see it anymore.. but he made it seem like she would be disfigured from this! horrible!
it healed quickly with antibiotics.. and we removed the packing after 2 days! all good!
until I got the SAME THING.. OPPOSITE NOSTRIL!! And of course.. I had just watched her get hers done.. so I was REALLY freaked out!!!
They ended up draining mine without cutting it.. and it healed up ok.. (my recovery was longer) and excruciating pain the entire time!!!!!!!!!
no sooner did that one heal.. i got one on my upper lip!
~And let me just say.. that after all of this.. i wash in the shower regularly with hibiclens (the hot pink stuff) even before i use my body wash.. and we wash our hands religiously.. and i bought everyone in the house their own germ-x bottle..lol.. so we ARE CLEAN!!!! ~
The upper lip was by far the most painful.. and i felt like i looked like a monster.. it looked like i had an egg under my lip!!!! no lie!!
it was awful.. finally got rid of that one.. and guess what? ANOTHER ONE.. upper lip… about 2millimeters away from the scar from the last one.. (not too bad.. just a small red scar that i can cover)
So.. now, I am sitting here.. with a larger than pea-sized lump in my upper lip.. swelling hasn’t started YET.. but i know it probably will.. if the last ones are any indication.. sick as a dog! nauseated and stomach cramps.. and I am so dreading going to the doctor.. as they all seem to treat the infections differently.. and i don’t know what i’m getting into before i go!!!! UGHHHH
But I can say that now.. when anyone in this house gets an ingrown hair or a bug bite.. I am ALL OVER IT!!!! I keep my eye on it and just make sure it’s nothing to get concerned about!
So.. we’ll see how THIS ONE goes today.. hopefully it will respond to whatever antibiotics they decide to give me!! GRRR
Thanks for reading!
~ Anna & Family
kathy // Aug 15, 2007 at 7:46 pm
I WOULD LIKE TO KNOW IF ANYONE HAS NOTICED A GENERAL FEELING OF DEPRESSION SINCE CONTRACTING MRSA. I FIRST BECAME INFECTED IN OCT 2006, BOIL IN MY GROIN AREA WHICH I FIRST THOUGHT WAS A RAZOR BUMP. LIKE MOST THE ER DR DIAGNOSED AN INGROWN HAIR AND STARTED ME ON ANTIBIOTICS, WITHOUT A CULTURE. SINCE THEN I HAVE HAD 4 MORE BOILS, UNDERARM,HIP, THE BACK OF MY HEAD, AND NOW ON MY CALF. I KEPT SAYING SOMETHING IS WRONG WITH ME , I DON’T FEEL RIGHT . I AM A 42 YR OLD FEMALE IN EXCELLENT HEALTH, VERY ACTIVE AND DO NOT TAKE ANY MEDS. I HAVE NO IDEA HOW I CAME IN CONTACT WITH MRSA. I HAVE BEEN GENERALLY DEPRESSED FOR THE PAST 10 MONTHS AND I HAVE ALWAYS BEEN A VERY POSITIVE, UPBEAT PERSON , I WONDER IF THERE IS ANY CONNECTION TO THE INFECTION.
I AM SITTING HERE NOW WITH PACKING IN THE DRAIN SITE ON MY LEG AFTER INSISTING ON A CULTURE
I WAS FINALLY DIAGNOSED W/ MRSA A FEW MONTHS AGO
I WAS NOT TOLD HOW DIFFICULT IT IS TO GET RID OF IT
NOW I HAVE STARTED THE WASHING OF THE SHEETS EVERYDAY
MY HUSBAND AND I ARE SHOWERING W/
HIBICLENS DAILY (EVEN THOUGH HE HAS NOT HAD A SINGLE OUTBREAK)
I CAN’T BELIEVE HOW PAINFUL THESE BOILS ARE AND HOW LITTLE INFORMATION IS AVAILABLE
THANK YOU FOR THIS SITE, THE INFORMATION IS INVALUABLE
KATHY, SOUTH FLORIDA
S. Mims // Sep 7, 2007 at 12:43 pm
My grandmother has been very ill. We found out she had cancer about six months ago. She has had some treatments but do to her age(84) the cure was worse than the cause and the treatments were recently stopped. I must also mention she has emphazima(?spelling) She has been back and forth to the hopital since the treatments started due to loss of blood and several other t