Anti-Aging Choices and Healthy Lifestyles

Sean: "Hey back."

Toni: "You already know what I want to talk about... MRSA. What is it?"

Sean: "Methicillin Resistant Staphylococcus aureus.... (MRSA).  It is a bacterial infection that is resistant to certain antibiotics. Methicillin would be one of the treatments for a staph infection.  MRSA is resistant to methicillin, as well as other common antibiotics."

Toni: "How is MRSA contracted?"

Sean: "It is contracted generally in one of two ways.  More commonly in the health care environment ie: hospital. Such infections are termed nosocomial....meaning any infection you receive while in the hospital. The second way, and less common, is community acquired.  Such as in schools, jail, work place, and social locations where clothing is limited." (Sean is now laughing.)

"A hospital acquired MRSA infection can be acquired in a surgical setting or during any invasive procedure such a catheters, or wound dressing changes."

"In a community setting MRSA infections typically involve the skin and can present as pustules or boils. They can be red and painful and have drainage. MRSA can enter the skin through areas that contain an injury or areas of the body that are covered in hair."

"This said.  Regardless of which area a MRSA is acquired, it is transferred by skin to skin contact.  You have a carrier and you have a recipient."

Toni: "How do we avoid a MRSA infection?"

Sean: "Regardless of the setting.  If simple, but consistent hygiene practices are followed, the likelihood of getting a MRSA infection are greatly reduced. Just remember the five C's when considering risk factors for MRSA infection:

• Crowding - in close contact with others

• Contact- skin to skin

• Compromised - cuts or abrasions

• Contaminated Items - (hospital setting must be clean- school, desk tops and drinking fountains should be clean)

• Lack of Cleanliness - mostly found in public bathrooms and other public places.

"Anytime you are in close contact with other people, you are more likely to get whatever germs or diseases are available.  This applies to flu, and all other types of community acquired diseases... not just MRSA."

"In a community acquired MRSA, if you have a strong immune system, you may not even require an antibiotic. In a hospital setting, it can be more dangerous because you would already be in the hospital and have a reason for being there...whatever you are being treated for. You would be more vulnerable to infection."

"The issue is that most people don't know if they have MRSA in a community setting. So, it is very important for the public to have a standard practice of good hygiene. I can't stress this enough."

"The facts are that in 2007- CDC Surveillance 32% of the US population have staph aureous. Only 2.3 million or 8% have the MRSA virus.  Approximately 19,000 people will die from MRSA each year. Keep a check on www.cdc.gov for more information on this and other communicable diseases. It is the law that they have to be reported."

Toni: "Is there any reason to believe this number of MRSA cases will rise?"

Sean: "I don't know how you would project that.  I don't know.  The majority of MRSA is found in hospitals.  It's not a new thing.  I've been hearing about MRSA ever since I've been in nursing and that's been a long time."

"Just remember, normal bacteria is a part of your body's defense. It's a good idea to only use antibiotics judicially.  Every time you get a cough or runny nose, you don't need an antibiotic. The body's immune system should take care of that. You don't want to become resistant to an antibiotic if you should ever really need one."

Toni: "Thanks, Sean."

Sean: " No problem, Mom. Talk to you soon."

Another story about MRSA...

Thanks to Mary Wilson from Easley, SC for the following article:

AND THIS NEWS IS FROM THE BBC.....
 AROMATHERAPY OILS KILL "SUPERBUG"

Tuesday, 21 December, 2004, BBC (British Broadcasting Corporation)

Essential oils could kill the deadly MRSA hospital 'superbug', scientists have claimed.

University of Manchester researchers found three of the oils, usually used in aromatherapy, destroyed MRSA and E.coli bacteria in two minutes.

They suggest the oils could be blended into soaps and shampoos, which could be used in hospitals to stop the spread of the superbug. Hospital-acquired infections, such as MRSA, kill an estimated 5,000 a year in the UK.

The Manchester study was triggered when complementary medicine specialists at Christie Cancer Hospital asked university researchers to test essential oils.

Dr. Peter Warn, who carried out the research, said: "When I tested the oils in the lab, absolutely nothing grew. Rather than stimulating bacteria and fungi, the oils killed them off."

The essential oils tested were Patchouli, Tea Tree, Geranium, Lavender essential oils and grapefruit seed extract.

The team tested 40 essential oils against 10 of the most infectious agents found in hospitals, including MRSA (methicillin-resistant staphylococcus aureus).

Two of the oils were found to kill MRSA and E.coli almost instantly, while a third was found to act over a longer period of time.

Dr Warn says the essential oils could be used to create much more pleasant inhalation therapies - which he said were likely to have a much higher success rate than the current treatment, which is only effective in around 50% of cases."

Dr Warn said: "We believe that our discovery could revolutionize the fight to combat MRSA and other superbugs."

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