Recurring MRSA Infections

[yoshi26]

Greetings,

I've been having recurring MRSA infections on my skin, mostly on my head/neck/face and a few on my arms. The first couple were diagnosed as cellulitis (as no cultures were taken) and were treated with Bactrim the first time, and Augmentin the second time. The third time I went into the Doctor, I requested a culture and was confirmed to be a case of MRSA. I was then given a double dose of Bactrim and sent on my way. The antibiotics worked for a while and knocked out the infections, but it always came back in different areas within a month or a little longer. After the third episode, I saw an infectious disease specialist who thought that the antibiotics were working, but I just keep getting re-infected. My thoughts are that they are not actually killing the infection, but just knocking it down to where it goes away for a limited amount of time.  Does anyone have any experience in this?

I know that I could step up to vancomycin (sp?) but fear that this might not be effective, as I've already been treated with this several years ago for a different infection. It was administered via a pic-line and had to inject myself 2x daily for 2 months. As I was not diagnosed with MRSA at that time, could my body and my current infections have developed a resistance to the drug from 3 years ago?

To complicate matters, I have a host of other skin and autoimmune problems. I've had dermatitis of one form or another since age 4 (now 26), recently diagnosed with PMLE (poly-morphic light eruptions) and alopecia areata (hair falling out). Thus, I always have some sort of lesions or abrasions that would allow entry of bacteria/virus into my body. Any help or advice on how to 1) Kill the MRSA infections for good and 2) prevent them from coming back. I know lots of hand washing and cleansing is key, but anything else?

I'm growing increasingly frustrated with my situation and looking for help anywhere I can find it. Any information/suggestions would be appreciated.

Thanks!

[acloudedangel]

I am not a Dr. but I have Had Mrsa for years.  I personally use a lot of ICE CUBES. Since the sores burn and the skin tends to dry I thought hey burn so Ice would feel so good so first rubbing alcohol to sterilize then hold ice cubes on sores ( open/lance if full) tell completely melted, do not dry area so moisture stays within sore then use Neosporin on top with a band-aide and repeat tell gone,, Please note this I am not a Dr and have no medical background just some Mom skills and common sense with no money to keep going to hospital… Stress does trigger more breakouts and NEVER pick at any black heads use facial antibacterial cleaners with exfoliating (sp?) beads NOT YOUR OWN FINGERS, also since lives in your nose I tend to put neosporin in bottom of inside of nose on occasion … Hope these things help… keep breakouts lower, and ice cube trick used ASAP upon first thought might even be a myrsa sore…. nothing use could hurt…. until the cure is found I hope all feels better….

[jershon11]

help i have mrsa on my armpit and its spreading!

[Zinnias45]

I had one on my armpit it was horrible I got it handled at a family care about 5 years ago. Still get small bumps on mynlegs non matter how careful I shave. At the moment I have a staph the size of half golf ball on my leg where my work shoe strap causes friction and its so bad that mynentjre foot is swollen and just today scripted two antibiotics .sucks. My now ex had it and I know I am now predisposed for my skin to not fight away MRSA after the first boil years ago.

The armpit was so horrible!!!!!

[mandarazz86]

hello all ,

ive been diagnosed with mrsa since september. For the first time I thought I had the flu little did i know i needed an emergency operation on my left thigh which was swollen and had cellulitus growing inside and under my right breast as well something showed. But apparently after the antibiotic bactrimin was distributed to me it seemed it doesnt work for me. shortly after two weeks being out of the hospital in the same incision on my thigh a tumor like shape formed on top of it and was drained.so surgeon insisted again i was hospitalized another two weeks seeing it relapsed and was still mrsa. finally on vancomyn i was prescribed  to go hone with or in house iv treatment. i got zyvox which seemed to work great when i was released home. i felt brand new again not as weak but it seems once the prescription was finished another month later i noticed some breakouts familiar with the previous ones.. idk how long you can have this for but this reoccurring visits and already 3 surgeries in 3 months is a bit much . i wonder is there really a cure or am i stuck with zyvox.. hopefully my next visit is well

seems we all have a little bit of questions but not enough answers.. good luck everyone . be well..

[Blaisew]

I am relieved to know that I am not alone (though I wouldn't wish this nightmare on anyone). I went to the ER about a year ago for a really painful abscess that appeared out of the blue. A Physicians Assistant diagnosed me with an "ingrown hair that might have gotten staph" after she poked the wound with her (bare & unsanitized) finger. I was sent on my way with a prescription for antibiotics. I returned within a week because it grew about 5 x in size. In a 3 month period I was in the hospital for skin abscess 14 times. It wasn't until the 14th visit when my entire face was swollen (I mean the whole thing - my eyes were swollen shut) that they realized I was infected with MRSA. After 9 days of I.V. Vanko and Dilaudid I was sent home with Clinda. I still have recurring infections, but I've given up hope with any professional medical treatment. I've even Lanced/drained my own wounds to save myself the trip. All of this started after I lost my state funded health care - so I've landed myself around $70,000 in the hole just from those 3 months. Like you, I have many subsequent infections/ailments. I am so embarrassed by the scabs and various bumps/lesions/blemishes that randomly appear all over my body. Not to mention the painful ingrown hairs that feel like cactus needles and are nearly invisible. Has anyone else found what appears to be red threads come from an infected area? Or sores that have a blackhead/pimple deep down in their skin that WILL NOT pop or drain?? I really hope we get answers, I cant handle the pain and suffering.

If I could recommend anything that's helped a little- it would be for you to use a drawing save... I was prescribed Tobradex when I was discharged from my long hospitalization and it helped immensely with draining infection. If you can't get a prescription, I recommend trying Bag Balm - they sell it at the drug store and even Wal-Mart. Just use a clean Q-tip to apply a generous amount of the Balm over the infected area, leave it uncovered and VERY lightly dab the surface *DON'T WIPE OFF* of the balm every ten minutes or so (to soak up the drainage that the Balm drew out of your skin).
Also, make sure your soap (in the shower) is Antibacterial. Body washes usually are not antibacterial. And avoid using abrasive washcloths/luffah's to scrub scabs away, you want the scabs there, as long as they're not holding infection in your skin.

sorry I couldn't be of more help... hope we get answers soon.

[zapperdave]

Hopefully, this will open the door for some MRSA sufferers.
zapperdave blogspot com

[knkids]

I have experienced the same things you've described completely, have you ever had problems in your house with mold or floods? I've used anti fungal cream n it helps n toothpaste its like a fungas, it doesnt like rain every time I've been caught in it, I get hairs like black little ones or dirt like spots or white clearish hairs that i can barely see showing up every where I just got diagnosed with mfsa its been going on for two yrs, but all happened after apartment flooded n my landlord never cleaned it properly n it was bad, use borax in your laundry that helps, surgar scrub in shower, things that are used for fungas treatment have deff been helping, St.Ives lotion antibacterial bodywash dial n I use tea tree shampoo by organixs. I've had the hair like things in my hair as well and always find a hair attached to scab where it wouldn't normally be, even under or side of nails, I know it was cause of flood and lanlord not taking the right health safety precautions to clean it, my life has been dramatically flipped cause of this so I hope this Med works n I'm gonna cont what I'm doing I also well for me it works clip the surounding/outside of open site n/or pluck the hair or dead skin off and it heals way quicker than picking scab over n over n not heal for months, that's what's been helping me it

[Zinnias45]

I know this is an oldnthread but I need to comment some info,  = use a salt scrub (very fine grains) never use sugar if fungus is suspected !!!!

Wash with something like Hibiclens , but do not over scrub your skin. Sulfates strip our skin's acid mantle AKA protective barrier !!

So please anyone reading this , do not use any scrub really but especially not a sugar based !!! Stop all usage of shampoos body washes etc that contain sodium lauryl sulfate and or sodium laryth sulfate (spelling is not good at the moment I'm so used to spell check auto correct )

The removal of sulfates CURED my extremely chronic dry hands I suffered with ever since I can remember . gone from having to use lotion 20 times after a shower to one time ! Just wanted to provide an example . if we clean too harshly by not knowing the negatives , our skin will be so very exposed and the pH level will be all messed up , our natural acid mantle will be stripped and that's counteracting our goal of preventing these staph s etc.

I don't claim to be a know it all, I just really need to share this information!!!!

When in had adult acne, nothing worked ! Except three things : I had to stop trying to remove clogged pores and picking messing with the blemishes 100 percent I put away my magnifying mirrior out of sight.

Second - I only wash my face with micellar cleansing water and plenty of water while showering.

Third - i! A chemical exfoliant!!!! It is incredibly effective and gentle, salicylic acid ,(no alcohol or alcohol denatured ) on my face it keeps pores clear before any debris has a chance to build up. Get a fragrance free non alcohol product with atleast 2% salicylic acid.

Wow I didn't mean to go so much off topic .

I had a random black fiber from my sock inside my staph infection, it is weird but at least I know it's from my sock.

[leannablackburn]

My story is sooo long that i could write a book. But long story short I have been to ezery hospital er,urgent care,public health center,dermo(osu),physcologist,and so on. No one can gize me a diagnosis. I had one doctor that i was refered to and he started of with antibiotics. He also asked me if he could take pictures of my lesions to show a renowned dermo..He did find a small amount of lyme but said i didnt have lyme disease.(??) I also had a couple spots on my thalmus show up in a ct scan.The nurses ezen preformed an allergy test on me and that came back 30 out of 34 items i reacted to.Which im not allergic to anything that i know of so this was a shock but still hopefull. The Doctor was really making me feel like i could be cured and then one day he took a huge biopsy of one of my wierd sores he told me that if that didnt gize any answers then all he was just going to just start searching page by page with his pathology book.(which he showed me). So when i call to get my results i am told that the doctor has my records and has disappeared.I literally feel into a huge depression again. It ***** when i go back to osu the er doctors asks me what i want him to do. ummmm?
So i relate with the on going mersa. Which no one around me has gotten it and i always haze a open sore so it not making since. O yeah one of my previous visits to the hospital the doctor swabbed one of my sores and told me it came back NO INFECTION and no cancer 2 days later i go to a local urgent care and they also swabbed one of my many sores and to my surprise the test came back that i have mersa. I ask the doctor if i probably had a staff infection before getting mersa and that doctor said the previous test that was negative makes no sense. Anyway back to some of my obsercations. I also feel and see a small dark hardish thing under the scab and it feels like a splinter kind of.Im always getting yelled at to not pick but after i "clean" it out and take rubber like scab off it gets better.Some other things i wish someone had a clue how to help me is: I see small little hairs everywhere places like up high on walls and when i brush my hair they  have been in my hair. My head is starting to itch so i treated it with lice shampoo and it seemed like i had tons of attached "stuff" to my hair. So is it possible to have head lice and body lice and maybe i got a secondary bacterial infection along the way. Im just at my whits end.Iv lost friends,work,social events and public all together.People acted like i had the plague between mersa and big oozy ulcer like sores.I tried bandages but i would use like 30 at a time and after being covered it seemed grosser and would spread outside of bandage.The blood seems to spread the infection at times. There is sooo much more but i have already rambled on so much that most of you have already stopped reading. lol  
Reading these post hit home.For the first time i decided to post my situation to see if ANYONE has ANY ideas or resources for me. BTW the worst of all is ;I am a licensed Massage therapist the practice of a limited branch of medicine.My passion in life is natural health care including the largest organ of the body the SKIN.. I'm having a difficult time finding work because of the sores,and being embarrassed when people star.. Iv tried hiding them but i have them on my hands wrists and face.if anyone has had same experiences or want to throw me suggestions im all for it but FYI I was taking a shower everyday before this started and sometimes up to 2-3 during the worst of it.I habe gotten better only taking 1 sometimes 2 and i try my best to keep my home as clean as i can with two kids and a non-helping husband that told people including my children that i was just cray and doing drugs. Which after 2 yrs he doesnt say it anymore but he really doesnt show concern.He wont even help clean the bad messes although knowing that it inflames my skin for days. O well thats another thing this skin issue has done.My husband not being there for me,really put a wedge in our relationship. ok well ill stop now .but send anye ifo if you can

[die01]

Hi, i have what is like severe dry skin with like big flakes of skin that stick out but they r all attached to the skin..on my hands,my head, my legs and arms.i also had one attach to the top of my lip.oh and also in my ears.i pull them off but they would come back in another spot.then i pulled a larger one and seen that i didnt get the whole thing out so i scrapted it and there i felt a hard like  thing (no blood as of yet) then i dug in to get this ? out..ouch  when i finally got it out it bleed alot for like 2 seconds and completely stopped. does anyone know what this is....help!     thanks

[candace84]

Hi, I am experiencing the same situation with recurring MRSA, and I don't even go out in public or come into contact with other very often. I'm 26 and have had MRSA 3 times in only a few months, each time having them lanced at the ER and put on antibiotics. I'd love to find a way to stop this from happening. It's very painful and embarassing.

[dollyflower]

hello.  i went to immeadiate care in feb.  put on antibotics,  went to my dr.  more pills and cream for scabbies.  ( i don't have bugs, but he did'nt know what i had.)  back to my dr a month or so later.  then the derm dr for 2 months, then the infectious diaese dr.  now back to my dr.  no one has done any tests other than the biospy (horrible speller) right now im on clindamycin 300mg 4x a day.  the sores get better, then they turn into a blood blistet that explodes.  then the scab.  it ozzes, and sometimes puss.  take off scab, then it starts to heal.  it seems as it won't heal until the stuff under is gone.  im so scared up. there is a hard dot in them, it bleeds a lot, when dot is gone, bleeding stops and swelling goes down and it is instant relief.  but then they keep on getting bigger and deeper.  i don't know where to go from here.  the er?  

[Dr Santos]

Hi,



Hi,

Definitive diagnosis of MRSA infection is usually through culture and sensitivity tests. This will not only tell you which bacteria is present, but also which antibiotic it is susceptible  or resistant. Recurrences may indeed be due to your persistent lesions in your skin. It is really important to wash your hands and carry a small bottle of hand sanitizer containing at least 60 percent alcohol for times when you don't have access to soap and water.  Avoid sharing personal items such as towels, sheets, razors, clothing and athletic equipment. This is becasue MRSA spreads on contaminated objects as well as through direct contact. Keep wounds covered and keep cuts and abrasions clean and covered with sterile, dry bandages until they heal.

It is important to use antibiotics appropriately. Even if the infection is getting better continue the prescribed period of days to prevent resistance. And if  your infection is not  improving after a few days of taking an antibiotic, it is advised that you see your doctor.

Take care and keep us posted.

[pjsnider]

When you had your areas cultured, the culture shows what you have and what it is sensitive to.Vanco is generally a last resort. I had mrsa 2 yrs ago and spent a week in the hospital on vanco because of a lost culture before they sent me home with bactrim. Ask your Dr what your strain is sensitive to and make sure that is what you are on and that you take it as prescribed.I almost died from my MRSA experience, I hope you are able to find the right antibiotic and the source as well.  

[dollyflower]

hi.  i started with impetigo in feb.  turned into a staff.  have been to dermertolist, infectious diease dr, now back to my reg.  doc.  he did a skin biospy.  will have results in tues.  the only med that has worked somewhat is clindamycin..  i take every 6 hours.  but they heal, then turn into blood blisters.  they don't heal until the hard dot in the middle  is gone.