This superbug called MRSA, or Methicillin-resistant Staphylococcus aureus, has also been a big topic in the news today because of an article in JAMA just released today (but embargoed - sorry, no link) stating that "based on 8,987 observed cases of MRSA and 1,598 in-hospital deaths among patients with MRSA, we estimate that 94,360 invasive MRSA infections occurred in the United States in 2005; these infections were associated with death in 18,650 cases."
I have a friend who nearly died from MRSA, was uninsured, and had multiple operations to control the infection and fix damage to his hand, all told costing the State of Illinois over one million dollars. How did he get MRSA? He didn't wash his hands. Ever. MRSA is extremely preventable, even in the hospital where it is of course most commonly found, by simple hygiene.
There is nothing so 'super' about this bug that a little soap and common sense can't take care of.
1 comment:
I heard this was related to the abuse of antibiotics. This is really scary!
Post a Comment