Replies to '04/01 The Superbug'

My heart goes out to you! I will pray for your recovery.

I would like to ask everyone here a question, something for them to ponder, and also tell you about my experience with MRSA.

First...you had a tummy tuck. This is a procedure that I would have LIKED to have had done, but due to the danger of MRSA, I will remain the way I am, tummy and all. I am not laying blame on you. I want to point something out to the general public. How many have had a cosmetic procedure, like breast augmentation? How many of these people are young, perhaps in their teens, and how many are considering having a procedure done? THINK ABOUT THIS LADIES.....ANY time you go in for a procedure, cosmetic or otherwise (breast enlargement) IT IS SURGERY, and you risk getting MRSA. If that isn't enough, you risk GIVING MRSA TO YOUR FAMILY AND OTHERS!!!!!  YOU may be healthy and be able to shrug MRSA off, but what about if you expose, say, your mom who is older and not able to fight MRSA off?

I am diabetic. IDDM to be exact (insulin dependant diabetes mellitus). You may not think of a diabetic as having a compromised immune system, but some of us do. I happen to be one of the un-lucky one's.

In 1980 I gave birth to my second son. Within a few short weeks I fell sick, REALLY sick. I had two things wrong with me. I had gall stones, and I had contracted Hepatitis B. Hep B is not easy to get. It is contracted through sexual contact, or a blood source. I am not sure HOW I contracted it, but it has a long incubation period, and looking back, I am fairly sure that I contracted it at my doctors office when I was having a blood draw, and had to be re-stuck several times due to the in-experience of the person doing the draw (now I always ask for someone skilled in phlebotomy). I was sick, VERY sick for a few months. I had surgery to remove my gall bladder in late 1980 (while I was 6 weeks pregnant with my third son).

Flash forward to 2006. My 2 year old grand daughter had this pimple looking thing on her face. We were in the pool and I wanted to take her home and pop this ugly thing! If I touched it she would cry out in pain. Soon after my daughter got a painful pimple on her leg, In both instances the pimple burst open, and oozed for a few days. The lesion left a scar. In a few weeks, I noticed a pimple on my grand daughters backside. By then my daughter mentioned that her (now ex) boyfriend said he had the same pimple and his two young son's had lesions on their head. What ever this was, was now spreading from person to person. My daughter took herself and her daughter to the doctor. The tests came back positive for MRSA. I had no idea what this was, so I Googled it, and was frightened at what I read. Not only can MRSA spread, but it can turn into Necrotizing Facetious (speliing is incorrect, I'm sure) FLEASH EATTING DISEASE! My daughter begged her Boyfriend to take the kids to the doctor. He refused saying he did not have enough money to take them (a long story). By then my daughter ended the relationship, but we are sure the boyfriends son's picked up MRSA from their mother who is an escort. My daughter and grand daughter had several outbreaks over the next year.

Currently, my daughter and grand daughter have had no more break outs.

Last November, I had emergency surgery, an appendectomy. Much to my distress, I was released from the hospital within 13 hours of having the surgery. As I mentioned, I am diabetic. My glucose reading going in to surgery was 500, normal is under 100. Within two days post-op, I was feeling feverish and had a lump in and around one of the incision sites (I had laparoscopic surgery). It was inflamed and tender, hell it downright HURT. I went to the doctor, he checked my out and told me I was fine, even though I was running a fever and had this lump, which by now was a mound. Two days after that, I had my husband rush me back to the doctors office. I had a massive infection that he had to drain. It must have looked pretty bad as the nurse that was assisting him, backed up and looked faint when the doctor cut into me. From that time in early December, until March, the following year, the doctor had to re-cut my wound every other week, to "allow the wound to heal from the bottom (inside) up (outside). Mind you, I knew about MRSA. I had seen it. Doctor told me that the culture taken on my wound showed E-COLI.

I was given antibiotic....pills and liquid.

I was very sick during this entire time. Every couple of days I would have terrible nausea and vomiting. I could get very little food down me, a few crackers and a bit of soup chased down with a few sips of 7-up or ginger-ale. In a few months time, I lost 50 pounds! I wound up in the emergency room to be hooked up to IVs twice. My blood pressure skyrocketed because I was so dehydrated. I had a CAT scan that showed nothing. I had my blood tested.  My primary asked if I had been out of the country. I had not been to Mexico in many months, but gave a stool sample to test for parasites. I was sent to a wound care specialist. I was till taking antibiotics, that just about killed me because I was nauseated and vomiting.

Finally, my primary said, and I quote..."if I didn't know better, I would think you had something called MRSA" ! Welllll DUHHHHH, I told you ALL I had been exposed to it many months earlier!

Slowly I got better...slowwwly I felt like a human again.

To this day, I do not know who or where I picked MRSA up. Was it from my daughter and grand daughter? We are almost compulsive about keeping things clean. I use a combination of alcohol and water in a spray bottle that I clean sinks, toilets, basins, floors, counter tops, etc. I use bleach IN my tub and toilet to clean them. We use wipes to clean the parts of a shopping basket we come into contact with. We wash hands all the time.

Did I get it at home...........OR, did I get it IN the hospital, OR did I get it at the doctors office? After all, he DID have gloves on, BUT he did not wear a mask on his face! If MRSA or step, staff is in most peoples noses, might it have come from my surgeon?

Just like years ago when I contracted Hep B, and recently MRSA, I have no one to blame, BUT, I will continue to be diligent with cleaning my surroundings. BTW, we wash our hands when we eat out BEFORE we eat, do you? I hope to GOD those who are preparing our food also wash their hands, but I fear...they don't.

So if you see a crazy woman, cleaning off a scooter and basket at your local wal Mart, stop by and say hello, it's probably me!

 OH, I almost forgot. We used a combination of water and Prvidone Iodine in a 10 per cent solution to dry up the lesions. We kept them covered with a band aid, and made sure we washed our hands THOUROLY after we treated the spot.

My heart goes out to you! I will pray for your recovery.

I would like to ask everyone here a question, something for them to ponder, and also tell you about my experience with MRSA.

First...you had a tummy tuck. This is a procedure that I would have LIKED to have had done, but due to the danger of MRSA, I will remain the way I am, tummy and all. I am not laying blame on you. I want to point something out to the general public. How many have had a cosmetic procedure, like breast augmentation? How many of these people are young, perhaps in their teens, and how many are considering having a procedure done? THINK ABOUT THIS LADIES.....ANY time you go in for a procedure, cosmetic or otherwise (breast enlargement) IT IS SURGERY, and you risk getting MRSA. If that isn't enough, you risk GIVING MRSA TO YOUR FAMILY AND OTHERS!!!!!  YOU may be healthy and be able to shrug MRSA off, but what about if you expose, say, your mom who is older and not able to fight MRSA off?

I am diabetic. IDDM to be exact (insulin dependant diabetes mellitus). You may not think of a diabetic as having a compromised immune system, but some of us do. I happen to be one of the un-lucky one's.

In 1980 I gave birth to my second son. Within a few short weeks I fell sick, REALLY sick. I had two things wrong with me. I had gall stones, and I had contracted Hepatitis B. Hep B is not easy to get. It is contracted through sexual contact, or a blood source. I am not sure HOW I contracted it, but it has a long incubation period, and looking back, I am fairly sure that I contracted it at my doctors office when I was having a blood draw, and had to be re-stuck several times due to the in-experience of the person doing the draw (now I always ask for someone skilled in phlebotomy). I was sick, VERY sick for a few months. I had surgery to remove my gall bladder in late 1980 (while I was 6 weeks pregnant with my third son).

Flash forward to 2006. My 2 year old grand daughter had this pimple looking thing on her face. We were in the pool and I wanted to take her home and pop this ugly thing! If I touched it she would cry out in pain. Soon after my daughter got a painful pimple on her leg, In both instances the pimple burst open, and oozed for a few days. The lesion left a scar. In a few weeks, I noticed a pimple on my grand daughters backside. By then my daughter mentioned that her (now ex) boyfriend said he had the same pimple and his two young son's had lesions on their head. What ever this was, was now spreading from person to person. My daughter took herself and her daughter to the doctor. The tests came back positive for MRSA. I had no idea what this was, so I Googled it, and was frightened at what I read. Not only can MRSA spread, but it can turn into Necrotizing Facetious (speliing is incorrect, I'm sure) FLEASH EATTING DISEASE! My daughter begged her Boyfriend to take the kids to the doctor. He refused saying he did not have enough money to take them (a long story). By then my daughter ended the relationship, but we are sure the boyfriends son's picked up MRSA from their mother who is an escort. My daughter and grand daughter had several outbreaks over the next year.

Currently, my daughter and grand daughter have had no more break outs.

Last November, I had emergency surgery, an appendectomy. Much to my distress, I was released from the hospital within 13 hours of having the surgery. As I mentioned, I am diabetic. My glucose reading going in to surgery was 500, normal is under 100. Within two days post-op, I was feeling feverish and had a lump in and around one of the incision sites (I had laparoscopic surgery). It was inflamed and tender, hell it downright HURT. I went to the doctor, he checked my out and told me I was fine, even though I was running a fever and had this lump, which by now was a mound. Two days after that, I had my husband rush me back to the doctors office. I had a massive infection that he had to drain. It must have looked pretty bad as the nurse that was assisting him, backed up and looked faint when the doctor cut into me. From that time in early December, until March, the following year, the doctor had to re-cut my wound every other week, to "allow the wound to heal from the bottom (inside) up (outside). Mind you, I knew about MRSA. I had seen it. Doctor told me that the culture taken on my wound showed E-COLI.

I was given antibiotic....pills and liquid.

I was very sick during this entire time. Every couple of days I would have terrible nausea and vomiting. I could get very little food down me, a few crackers and a bit of soup chased down with a few sips of 7-up or ginger-ale. In a few months time, I lost 50 pounds! I wound up in the emergency room to be hooked up to IVs twice. My blood pressure skyrocketed because I was so dehydrated. I had a CAT scan that showed nothing. I had my blood tested.  My primary asked if I had been out of the country. I had not been to Mexico in many months, but gave a stool sample to test for parasites. I was sent to a wound care specialist. I was till taking antibiotics, that just about killed me because I was nauseated and vomiting.

Finally, my primary said, and I quote..."if I didn't know better, I would think you had something called MRSA" ! Welllll DUHHHHH, I told you ALL I had been exposed to it many months earlier!

Slowly I got better...slowwwly I felt like a human again.

To this day, I do not know who or where I picked MRSA up. Was it from my daughter and grand daughter? We are almost compulsive about keeping things clean. I use a combination of alcohol and water in a spray bottle that I clean sinks, toilets, basins, floors, counter tops, etc. I use bleach IN my tub and toilet to clean them. We use wipes to clean the parts of a shopping basket we come into contact with. We wash hands all the time.

Did I get it at home...........OR, did I get it IN the hospital, OR did I get it at the doctors office? After all, he DID have gloves on, BUT he did not wear a mask on his face! If MRSA or step, staff is in most peoples noses, might it have come from my surgeon?

Just like years ago when I contracted Hep B, and recently MRSA, I have no one to blame, BUT, I will continue to be diligent with cleaning my surroundings. BTW, we wash our hands when we eat out BEFORE we eat, do you? I hope to GOD those who are preparing our food also wash their hands, but I fear...they don't.

So if you see a crazy woman, cleaning off a scooter and basket at your local wal Mart, stop by and say hello, it's probably me!

 OH, I almost forgot. We used a combination of water and Prvidone Iodine in a 10 per cent solution to dry up the lesions. We kept them covered with a band aid, and made sure we washed our hands THOUROLY after we treated the spot.