Staphylococcus or staph bacteria are naturally present in the skin but they are capable of triggering issues once they penetrate the skin through a cut or enter the body or bloodstream by other methods. Methicillin-resistant staphylococcus aureus (MRSA) is a type of staph that is resistant to various antibiotic drugs and can trigger potentially serious and fatal infections. If you want to learn more about this type of infection, click here.
Home care and drainage of the abscess
When it comes to minor cases of MRSA infections, they can cause red-colored and swollen bumps or boils on the skin. The doctor will advise treating these sores at home by cleansing the affected area and covering it with sterile bandages. In case you suspect that an individual has MRSA infection, a doctor should be consulted before starting any home treatment.
If the MRSA infection is localized to the skin but severe, it can cause sore abscesses that are filled with fluid or pus. The treatment of the skin abscess can be started in the doctor’s clinic without requiring hospitalization. The treatment typically involves the creation of an incision in order to drain out the abscess and then cleaning and covering the wound to prevent further infection from developing.
Treatment using antibiotics
Even though MRSA is highly resistant to the traditional antibiotics that are given to treat staph infections, there are some antibiotic medications that are still effective in fighting off an infection. In most cases, the doctor will test the strain of bacteria in order to help determine the most suitable antibiotic to provide.
The orally-taken antibiotics include doxycycline, clindamycin, tetracycline and linezolid. The antibiotic vancomycin is commonly used in treating antibiotic-resistant bacteria such as MRSA.
As for severe cases of MRSA that penetrates beyond the skin, it would require intravenous antibiotics in the hospital. The MRSA blood infections have the potential to be deadly if not managed right away with intravenous antibiotics. Likewise, pneumonia which is also a severe infection that can occur due to the penetration of the MRSA into the lungs would also require hospitalization of the individual and require treatment with IV antibiotics.
Supportive medical treatment
In some cases with MRSA, it would require supportive medical treatment if the infection spread via the bloodstream and affect other bodily organs such as the kidneys, heart or lungs. The nature of the treatment tends to vary depending on the nature of the complications that manifest. However, individuals usually require intravenous administration of fluid or other medications to prevent dehydration and manage secondary health issues that might arise. In some cases, they need oxygen if they develop an MRSA-induced heart infection or pneumonia that triggers issues with breathing.
In case MRSA infects the kidneys and eventually leads to kidney failure, the individual might undergo dialysis which is the mechanical removal of toxic waste and substances from the bloodstream.