MRSA, Staph, Staff, Mersa, Methicillin Resistant Staphylococcus Aureus Symptoms & Treatment

Lawsuit: Life-threatening conditions at Lake County Jail

Link: Lawsuit: Life-threatening conditions at Lake County Jail -- -- chicagotribune.com.

HAMMOND, Ind. - Four men filed a federal lawsuit Tuesday alleging conditions at the Lake County Jail are so dangerous they are life-threatening, including presence of the drug-resistant staph known as MRSA. The lawsuit, which seeks to gain class-action status, seeks unspecified damages from Sheriff Roy Dominguez, two people who served as warden of the jail since May 2006 and other unidentified jail supervisors. It was filed in U.S. District Court in Hammond. The Associated Press left a message seeking comment on the lawsuit from Dominguez on Tuesday at his office. The lawsuit contends that the plaintiffs were the moving force behind the alleged violations, condoning the unconstitutional conditions. It alleges that people are held for weeks in crowded holding cells in which they are forced to sleep on concrete floors. It also claims that people in the holding cell are not provided showers, soap or change of clothes and that toilet paper is often not available.

Second Prison Guard Found With MRSA

Link: The Herald-Mail.

Prison officials are treating a possible health situation as though a second Maryland Correctional Institution staff member has MRSA, or methicillin-resistant staphylococcus aureus, infection. advertisement An officer at MCI south of Hagerstown was hospitalized the first week of April with a confirmed MRSA infection. Department of Public Safety and Correctional Services spokesman Rick Binetti said Tuesday he could not confirm that a second staff member was diagnosed with MRSA. Prison officials are treating the situation as though a staff member was diagnosed, and have been re-educating the staff about MRSA, he said.

Inmates exposed to 'superbug,' lawsuits say

Link: Inmates exposed to 'superbug,' lawsuits say | courier-journal | The Courier-Journal.

Lonnie Napier says he was infected with the flesh-eating bacteria at the Laurel County Detention Center, and that his wound grew so gangrenous that a portion of his scrotum had to be removed. Advertisement Martel Chapman said she was infected in the Hardin County jail after being forced to share a cell with women who had draining sores and boils. Scott Wooler said he caught it in the Hickman County Detention Center when he helped another inmate change his leaking bandages. All three claim in lawsuits that they were infected with the painful, disfiguring and potentially fatal penicillin-resistant staph infection known as MRSA -- or methicillin-resistant Staphylococcus aureus -- while incarcerated.

Jail isolates inmates with staph infection

Link: Jail isolates inmates with staph infection.

Two inmates at the Somerset County Jail are in isolation with what may be a Methicillin-resistant bacterial infection. MRSA infections are caused by strains of Staphylococcus aureus bacteria (or staph) that are highly resistant to common antibiotics. Such infections can be life-threatening, although in most cases they are treatable. The two inmates were diagnosed with what appears to be a bacterial infection late Friday and after being treated at a local hospital are now back at the jail, according to Captain Stephen Giggey, jail administrator. While they are being isolated as if they have an MRSA infection, that diagnosis could not be confirmed Tuesday. Staphylococcus bacteria is very common, with about 25 to 30 percent of people carrying it on their skin or in their noses without suffering any ill effects. MRSA is much less common, with about 1 percent of people carrying it. Healthy people can carry the bacteria without any ill effects.

Prisoners, guards fear for health: Alaska

Link: Prisoners, guards fear for health: Alaska News | adn.com.

Prisoners are wiping down doorknobs with bleach. Guards are wearing plastic gloves whenever they touch anything inside a cell. And inmates are telling other inmates to go see a doctor when a rash shows up on their skin. Within the walls of Alaska prisons rumors are rampant about the dangers of a drug-resistant bacteria that can cause painful and potentially dangerous skin infections. But medical staff in the facilities say worries about the staph infection MRSA are overblown and want prisoners and guards to halt what they call misinformation. "This is a mirror image of society's response to HIV when it first came into existence," said Roger Hale, a physician's assistant at Palmer Correctional Facility for more than 20 years. "Ignorance causes a lot of confusion and fear." The state Department of Corrections says there have been no documented cases of deaths from MRSA. Cases of infections occur, but that is to be expected in a population generally weakened by illness as most prisoners are, said Dr. Henry Luban, the department's medical director. Only one prison guard reported it, and that was in 2006, said deputy director of institutions Bryan Brandenburg. The correction officers' union, though, says the infection is growing among inmates, spreading to guards, and has even killed two prisoners.

Dartmouth Jail Inmates MRSA Fear

Link: Nova Scotia News - TheChronicleHerald.ca.

A group of inmates in a Dartmouth jail are afraid they’ve been exposed to a superbug. "I’m worried about getting it," said Bill, who asked that his real name not be used. About eight months ago, an inmate in Bill’s section of the Central Nova Scotia Correctional Facility was diagnosed as carrying bacteria commonly called MRSA. Concerns arose Tuesday morning when that inmate was moved out of his cell and into the jail’s infirmary, Bill said. The man could be heard saying, "I’m staying there (in the infirmary) until I get rid of it this time." The man’s cellmate had been taken to the health unit Monday, Bill said. Tuesday afternoon, a spokesman for the Capital district health authority confirmed there are four inmates at the Burnside jail who have tested MRSA-positive. The latest case was diagnosed earlier Tuesday, Peter Graham said.

Correctional Officer Seriously Ill From MRSA Infection

Link: Your4State.com - Correctional Officer Seriously Ill From MRSA Infection.

NBC25 has confirmed that a correctional officer at MCI is seriously ill from the staph infection known as "MRSA".

The officer's name is not being released, but NBC25 has learned that he is being treated at Johns Hopkins Hospital in Baltimore.

Corrections officials say there are no other cases. They are not certain if he became infected on the job.

The state has notified the wardens at all of the Hagerstown prisons, and correctional officers have been given fact sheets about how to protect themselves from MRSA, corrections officials say.

Understanding MRSA. (Mersa or Staph)

Ask an MRSA question * MRSA News * MRSA in your locality

MRSA Watch has gathered over 4500 articles on MRSA into a unique directory - see A-Z  guide in right hand column. Click on coloured text in the MRSA Basics guide below for more information on a specific subject.  The site is updated daily. Scroll down past the guide for specific information about aspects of MRSA

We also have an information packed audio introduction will help you grasp the key facts and the key issues surrounding MRSA

Simple staph aureus (SA) bacteria, (mrsa is not a virus), can be found on the bodies of up to 30% of the general population. It caused many problems before the use of antibiotics made wound recovery a safer process. Hospital acquired staph is generally resistant to several antibiotics but especially Methicillin, hence the name MRSA. This is found in about 1% of the population but in some pockets of the population this figure can be much higher.

Image from Komo News

Community Acquired MRSA (CA MRSA) is a different strain of MRSA, mainly causes skin infections and is treatable by more drugs at this time. CA MRSA (sometimes known as Mersa or Mursa) is more infectious and some strains of it are more destructive - should it become resistant to more antibiotics it could pose a considerable public health risk. Many people carry or are 'colonised' by staph bacteria but only suffer when they have another illness.

The colonisation stage carries no symptoms. Many only suffer MRSA as an infection of an existing wound. In recent times however some types of CA MRSA have begun to cause significant skin infections in otherwise healthy patients. The entry point is often a tiny cut, graze or exisiting skin condition.

How do people catch MRSA?
There are several ways it is believed to spread.

• Hand carriage - this is why hospital staff are encouraged to wash their hands after each patient.
• Contaminated surfaces - this is why clean hospital wards are vital.
• Via medical instruments - this is why many now have special coatings or have silver elements. This discourages lingering residues and/or kills external infection entering the wound
• Via airborne particles - MRSA often resides in the nasal passages and can spread with colds and flu as a secondary infection that may be dormant for some while.
• Shared items - Families or other close knit groups sharing a facility such as military personnel, a sports team or prison inmates may share hygiene items such as towels etc. This is another vector for the spread of the bacteria
• Needles - Drug users sharing needles may be passing on MRSA alongside HIV or Hepatitis C. The same could be said of tattoo artists who do not have strict hygiene regimes.
• Sexual Intimacy - the nose, groin and underarms are key colonisation areas for the bacteria. Sex workers and the habitually promiscous will be super spreaders in a society in much the same way as they are for AIDS.

How is it treated?
There are 3 key treatment regimes that are commonly used.

• For those who are colonised - a nasal treatment and a skin wash. This is often the strategy when MRSA is rare or prior to an operation as a means of preventing infection. Where MRSA is common some doctors will not suggest decolonisation as many will be recolonised within months within the local community. Some deep seated - throat and intestine - colonisation may require drug treatment.
• For those who have a potential or active bloodstream infection - drugs such as Vancomycin, Linezolid or Daptomycin.
• For those with infected wounds - special honey, silver bandages, garlic preparations and tea tree oil are all believed to be effective in killing MRSA in a wound. Many who have the skin infections common with CA MRSA simply need incision and drainage of the infected area and good hygiene while it heals. Antibiotics are not always needed.

How can it be prevented
The media often focus on clean hospitals and clean hands as a key to combating MRSA. Others believe that this will only cut cases by 30% and that a diverse strategy is vital and will include:

• Clean Wards - especially surfaces and keyboards.
• Staff Screening - are they super carriers?
• Patient Screening - so that they can be decolonised and to avoid self infection.
• Hospital Equipment - because it can take the infection deep into a wound.
• Air Hygiene - to help prevent nasal colonisation
• Hand Hygiene - to prevent transport from patient to patient via staff hands
  
• Antibiotic Restraint - because resistance grows from over prescription
• The Food Chain - is resistance also provoked by over use in the animals that we eat?
• Patient Isolation - this helps lessen the potential risk of airborne infection
• Lifestyle Choices - needle injected drugs and multiple sexual partners help spread chronic illnesses that emerge slowly.

What can I do

• Stay informed - this site and several others can help you do this. The A-Z guide in the right hand column will give you in depth information on over 50 aspects of MRSA from over 4000 articles, news items and academic papers.
  
• Ask others via our MRSA Watch forum
• Act locally by becoming involved in patient advocacy or patient/hospital forums
• Seek justice - do you need to take legal action because of neligence or do we all need to speak up for communities who are being hit by CA MRSA but are underinsured and often powerless.

MRSA Headlines

Northpinellas: Jail cell to hospital bed

Link: Northpinellas: Jail cell to hospital bed.

Her mother, sister and boyfriend claim the jail ignored Palinchik's complaints and condition. They say she was healthy when she entered the jail and that she contracted MRSA in the facility. The Sheriff's Office is carrying out an internal investigation, which it said is standard in cases where an inmate becomes so ill. Pinellas jail officials say they deal with MRSA every day. Sometimes inmates carry the infection in; other times they can acquire it in jail. But unlike illnesses such as tuberculosis, MRSA need not be reported to county or state health departments unless there is an outbreak. Sheriff's spokeswoman Marianne Pasha said there hadn't been any outbreaks of MRSA in the jail and the cases that do exist were "individual in nature."

Inmate with MRSA may lose legs, arms

Link: Inmate with MRSA may lose legs, arms - UPI.com.

A Florida woman jailed for shoplifting may lose both arms and both legs to a MRSA staph infection that has left her in a coma. The family of Dorothy Palinchik said they were told by a doctor at Largo Medical Center her limbs must be amputated for her to have a chance at survival, the St. Petersburg Times reported Thursday. Palinchik's family said the 42-year-old waitress is suffering from MRSA and a severe case of pneumonia. The infection has done irreversible damage to her arms and legs, doctors told the family.