Treatments
While it may seem like there is no treatment for MRSA since it is resistant to antibiotics, there are still some antibiotics out there that can be used to treat it. The most common one is vancomycin, but there are others that are used (www.mayoclinic.com). There are also different creams and antibiotic treatments that can be used to help keep MRSA from spreading on the body or colonizing there. There is always the threat that Staphylococcus aureus will become resistant to vancomycin or another drug that is used to treat MRSA, so some doctors prefer to drain the abscesses that are caused by MRSA instead of giving more antibiotics.
Obviously, the best way to treat any infection is to not get it at all. To protect yourself against these infections, there are a couple of very simple steps to take (http://www.mayoclinic.com/health/mrsa/DS00735/DSECTION=8).
1. WASH YOUR HANDS! This is the most simple thing in the world, and yet it can do so much to help protect against any
infection including MRSA.
2. Make sure that your doctor and any other health care professional that touches you or sees you watches their hands, it is
so easy to spread these bacteria from person to person, make sure that you are not the next victim simply because your
nurse forgot to wash her hands.
3. Don't share personal items such as razors or towels with other people.
4. If you do have a wound, keep it covered. This helps protect yourself from MRSA entering in through your wound and it also
protects the people around you if you do have MRSA.
5. Get tested if you think that you might have MRSA. It is a very simple test that can protect others from contracting MRSA
from you. Also, if you get diagnosed early, then you can begin treatment earlier which could help prevent you from
having a very serious infection later on.
6. Shower after you have any contact with another person to be sure that you aren't contracting the infection from them.
7. USE ANTIBIOTICS APPROPRIATELY! This is very important. The reason that we have these resistant bacteria is because
we haven't used penicillin and other antibiotics correctly. When you do not take all of the antibiotics that you were
prescribed, you run the risk that you haven't killed off all of the bacteria and now since they are not dead, they have the
chance of becoming resistant to it the next time that you try to treat an infection with that drug. If you were prescribed
it, take it and take all of it even if you do begin to feel better. Also do not take antibiotics because you have a cold,
these medicines do nothing to help you, but they do help the bacteria to become resistant to it by exposing the antibiotic
to them.
seubert.heid@students.uwlax.edu