MRSA or methicillin-resistant Staphylococcus aureus has developed into a serious problem for the healthcare community and for the general population. These bacteria constantly mutate so they are resistant to almost every antibiotic we have available. If MRSA infections get into your blood or internal organs it can be almost impossible to eliminate.

A large percentage of MRSA cases are infections of the skin. MRSA on the skin will produce boils or abscesses on the skin that can become painful and swollen as teh infection builds. If this MRSA infection is left untreated it can get into the bloodstream where it can travel throughout the body and often becomes lethal.  Death is not uncommon if your MRSA infection reaches this level.

If a MRSA abscess is present, the most common response is to cut open the abscess and allow the infection to drain. This surgical procedure should only be performed by a doctor qualified to do so. However, just because the abscess is opened, it does not mean the MRSA is eliminated. MRSA is easy to spread. The drainage can get into another cut or open area of the body to cause re-infection. The MRSA may already be present deep within the body, so surgery may not get rid of it completely.

So what about antibiotics? In most cases, the doctor can prescribe an antibiotic for a bacterial infection to get rid of it. But this is not the case with MRSA. The overuse of antibiotics is what has produced MRSA in the first place. It is common to take a round of antibiotics for a MRSA infection, only to find the infection has returned after you have finished the antibiotics.

Essentially, you have a cycle that starts with a MRSA infection. You are prescribed a round of antibiotics. You take the antibiotics and begin to feel better. You follow the doctor’s order and finish the antibiotics thinking everything is okay. Unfortunately, after a few days, you find yourself with the same infection that you began with. Why does this happen?

Colonization is the reason why MRSA infections keep returning. Colonization means you carry the bacteria on your body or in your body. These bacteria are sitting, waiting for an opportunity to enter through a cut or surgical wound. A weak immune system can give MRSA inside your body the opportunity to make you sick. So even if you get rid of your current MRSA infection, colonization with MRSA will make it highly possible the infection will return.

How MRSA is Drug Resistant

To better understand why antibiotics no longer work with this type of bacteria you need to have a better understanding of why MRSA is resistant to most antibiotics. Microbes are highly adaptable. If something interferes with their growth, like an antibiotic, they adapt by changing their genetic structure. They can do this in several ways.

1. Mutation
Microbes reproduce by dividing every few hours. This gives them the ability to evolve rapidly and adapt quickly. Therefore, with each replication, certain aspects of the microbe with mutate to help it survive exposure to an antibiotic.

2. Gene Transfer
Microbes will transfer genes to each other. Therefore, bacteria that contain drug resistant genes will transfer these genes to the non-drug resistant bacteria. This will allow the non-resistant bacteria to become drug resistant. These bacteria will then continue to multiply.

3. Selective Pressure.
By the process of natural selection, the strong bacteria will survive. This means the non-resistant bacteria will die in the presence of an antibiotic, leaving behind only the resistant bacteria. These resistant bacteria will continue to replicate passing its resistance to its offspring.

MRSA also has defense mechanisms to help it resist antibiotic. One such defense gives the bacteria the ability to alter its cell wall structure so the antibiotic is not able to recognize it. Essentially, these bacteria can hide in your body. Another defense mechanism that MRSA has is the ability to release a protein that will neutralize the antibiotic.

There are very few antibiotics on the market that are still effective against MRSA. However, these antibiotics are not without risk. It may be only a matter of time before MRSA develops a resistance to these antibiotics.

“Last Resort” Antibiotics for MRSA

Vancomycin is a powerful antibiotic that is used  to treat MRSA. It is administered through the vein, which will require hospitalization for the first few doses. After that, it can be given at home by a home health nurse.

Vancomycin can have side effects with some of them being serious. The most serious side effects of this drug are listed below:

• Ringing in the ears and temporary or permanent hearing loss.
• Inability to urinate or decreased urination.
• Flu like symptoms that include fever, chills, and body aches.
• Fainting or feeling light-headed.
• Skin rashes, redness or bruising.
• Severe tingling, numbness, pain or muscle weakness.
• Severe stomach pain, watery or bloody diarrhea.
• Swelling of face, lips, tongue or throat.
• Difficulty breathing.

If you experience any of these side effects, it is critical that you seek immediate medical attention.

Another antibiotic that is often used to treat MRSA is Zyvox. However, it must be used cautiously because it interacts with a large number of other drugs. These drug interactions could be life threatening. Certain foods must be avoided also. For example, foods containing tyramine can raise blood pressure to dangerous levels. The following list contains the most serious side effects associated with Zyvox.

• Shortness of breath.
• Swelling of the face, lips or tongue.
• Pale skin, easy bruising or unexplained bleeding.
• Flu like symptoms such as fevers or chills.
• Bloody or watery diarrhea.
• Blurred vision or difficulty seeing colors.
• Burning pain, numbness or tingling in your hands or feet.
• Seizures
• Lactic acidosis. The symptoms are muscle pain, weakness, a cold feeling in your arms and legs, trouble breathing, stomach and vomiting, slow or uneven heart rate, dizziness or a tired feeling.

These symptoms all require immediate medical intervention. If left untreated it could be fatal.

MRSA is definitely a bacterium that needs more research, and better treatment measures put into place. Until this happens, there will be a lot of unnecessary illnesses and deaths.