Health News Aug. 21st

Superbug Sweeps San DiegoBacteria Has Potentially Fatal EffectsSAN DIEGO -- Bug bites are common in summer but a new super bug sweeping San Diego could have potentially fatal effects.Local hospital emergency rooms are being jammed by patients who've been bitten by a strain of bacteria resistant to antibiotics. Although the bites look they come from spiders, officials say they're much more harmful. Even worse: They're spreading so fast that the local emergency rooms are reporting at least one new infection per day.The bacteria is called "metha-cillin resistant staph aureus'' -- or "MRSA" for short and while it looks harmless under a microscope, Scripps Mercy hospital epidemiologist Frank Myers III said it can potentially deadly."This particular strain is particularly nasty because it can make us sick it can cause skin infections and it's also resistant to many common antibiotics we use to treat it," Myers said.According to Myers, the strain has been growing in strength in just the last few years."In 2002, we saw no cases of community associated MRSA. In 2006, we're now seeing over a case a day in our emergency room," Myers said.MRSA is particularly fast growing but spreads even more rapidly -- and that's what worries Myers."We've seen family members have these boils be treated inappropriately, sharing towels or bars of soap and those can spread very effectively in household setting so instead of one case we now see an entire family," Myers said.If left untreated, MRSA can disfigure and sometimes be fatal. The current strain in San Diego originated locally and is spreading throughout the community at a very high rate.Although the strain is resistant to most antibiotics, Myers says some still do work but warns if you see a strange bite that doesn't seem to be healing to see a doctor right away."Ask [the doctor to] do a culture on it and then follow completely the guidelines for antibiotic use.MRSA used to be spread a lot in locker rooms, especially among football players and wrestling teams. Now, Myers said babies are getting through a diaper rash and other family members are spreading it just by casual touch.
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