My 3 year old has MRSA!

labcat01, BSN, RN · Jul 20, 2006

I've done just a bit of research on MRSA and it seems that it would be unlikely for her to catch it from you via your job. Most hospital aquired strains are very different from community aquired strains- so don't let yourself feel guilty about that. I am so sorry for you and your family and I hope your daughter has a quick recovery!

CritterLover, BSN, RN · Jul 20, 2006

in the city where i work, mrsa is thougt to be carried by 1/3 of the population and over 2/3 of health care workers. (according to our infectious disease doctors). scary.

santhony44, MSN, RN, NP · Jul 20, 2006

Community-acquired MRSA is different from hospital acquired, and fortunately is susceptible to several antibiotics. Bactrim, tetracycline, and maybe erythromycin? I've forgotten what else.

I had a case recently in a young, healthy woman with no risk factors that I'm aware of. She too had boils, treated with Augmentin, they got better but recurred, and MRSA cultured out. She did fine on the correct antibiotic.

I've read that CAMRSA is more common in people with recent tattoos, people on sports teams, and prisoners, but none of that fit my patient (and obviously not your 3-year-old!)

She didn't get it from you, and she should do just fine.

I haven't seen anyone have an adverse reaction to Bactrim in quite a long time, either.

MS._Jen_RN, ASN, RN · Jul 20, 2006

I work in home care as well as the hospital. One of my homecare Pts had community aquired MRSA. He was an otherwise healthy 30 something that worked in a field having nothing to do with healthcare. He got a reoccurance actually. He had the abcesses on his lower back and one buttock. I would suggest that your Da see an infectious disease specialist if you suspect that treatment is not going well. (if she hasn't already). My patient had a long course of abx, a regimine of a hebicleanse type shower daily for a time, and intra-nasal abx ointment for the whole family for a time.

This is one of the scary realities of microbiology. When we come up with a way to destroy something, evolution takes over and changes the game. Unfortunatly people don't evolve at the same rate as bacteria. :)

And people think that we're kidding when we lecture about taking all of an abx, hand washing etc. . . (not that you or your Da did anything wrong)

Best of luck, let us know how things go.

~Jen

LeahJet, ASN, RN · Jul 20, 2006

We are averaging 5 to 10 I&D of abscesses a day in our ER. Most of those are culturing out MRSA. They almost always are mistaken for a "spider bite" and start off pretty small and benign then are described as growing large and painful within a matter of hours.

There is a doc that is rx'ing bacitracin (?).....applied to nares w/ q-tip daily to help prevent re-occurrance. Someone please correct me if I have my abx ointment wrong.

We are seeing all walks of life with this. Unfortunately, that includes a great number of children.

Good luck and I hope your little girl feels better!

MIA-RN1, RN · Jul 20, 2006

I worked w/ someone who had a terrible UTI that cultured out either MRSA or ORSA. THey found it in her nose as well and her husband was found to have it in an abcess on his arm. My friend had to use some type of nasal medication and took oral Cipro as well. I beleive that her husband got vanco.

AnnaN5 · Jul 20, 2006

I had a MRSA infection almost 2 years ago and to this day I am still not sure how I managed to get it. I work in a lab and one night I put my lab coat on and felt something scratch my arm so I took my labcoat off and shook it out. I had a super tiny red dot on my arm and thought nothing of it. By later that night it was about the size of a mosquito bite so I thought there was some type of bug in my lab coat. By the next night my arm was really swollen and very painful & hot. The next morning I went to urgent care but they just told me to put warm compresses on it because it was not ready to be lanced. About 2 days later I went to my pcp and they lanced it and took a culture, it came back positive for MRSA.

Anagray, BSN · Jul 20, 2006

Hey, thanks for the replies! :)

LeahJet, I do know which topical abx u are talking about. It starts with an "M" i think. I applied it to one of our frequent flyer for several admitions.

I don't asctually know if it really works. Only one of our ID specialists orders it.

chelli73 · Jul 20, 2006

We are averaging 5 to 10 I&D of abscesses a day in our ER. Most of those are culturing out MRSA. They almost always are mistaken for a "spider bite" and start off pretty small and benign then are described as growing large and painful within a matter of hours.
There is a doc that is rx'ing bacitracin (?).....applied to nares w/ q-tip daily to help prevent re-occurrance. Someone please correct me if I have my abx ointment wrong.
We are seeing all walks of life with this. Unfortunately, that includes a great number of children.
Good luck and I hope your little girl feels better!

i have found that mupirocin ointment has the strongest effect when applied to abcesses, and i have even swabbed the nares with a dab of it when i did not have access to the nasal spray. the abcesses clear up in a matter of three days in conjuction with Augmentin po. bacitracin is excellent for moderate wounds or burns:balloons:

gr8rnpjt, RN · Jul 20, 2006

Hi everyone. I haven't posted in ages, but browse the posts here and there. Now I have something to share.
My poor 3 year old daughter has been diagnosed with community MRSA - she had multiple abscesses on the skin, treated with wrong drugs, until they finally surgically drained one and cultured it.
I never throught this would happen to either of my kids. Myself - maybe - constant contact with med-surg patients in the hospital setting, but my 3 year old.. it is just devastating. I know she will be ok, (hopefully she will not be psychotic or have kidney problems from Bactrim) but I only now fully understand what we are facing as a nation regarding MRSA.
I know the bird flu is a hot topic, but I almost feel like we are heading into an epidemic of MRSA if chldren and college kids are now getting it.
I personally do not know anyone outside of hospital who has/had this type of skin MRSA.
What is your experience in the community? Friends? Relatives?
Do you know of any new ways of approaching the problem besides using Linezolid and how are your employers reacting to this issue?

Anagray, sorry about your dd. I have posted here recently about my dd. She is living on a marine base in CA. She came home last christmas with her husband and daughter and they stayed with his mother. His brother who is 16 came down with a terrible lung infection. He was hospitalized and treated for MRSA pneumonia. About 2 months later after she went home my dd came down with folliculitis on both legs. They were cultured and she was given a cream. The infection spread into her thighs and became multiple abscesses. When she called her PCP they told her that the culture from the folliculitis was + for MRSA. She was placed on an oral, don't know which one. Last month she called and said she had 2 new abscesses on her back. The PCP cultured these but they did not grow MRSA.

weirdRN, RN · Jul 20, 2006

I am looking for pics for what this might look like any one have any good websites that has pics of rashes and boils and such caused by MRSA?