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Drug-Resistant Staph Germ's Toll Is Higher Than Thought
WashingtonPost.com ^ | 10/17/2007 | Rob Stein

Posted on 10/17/2007 6:57:17 AM PDT by zencat

A dangerous germ that has been spreading around the country causes more life-threatening infections than public health authorities had thought and is killing more people in the United States each year than the AIDS virus, federal health officials reported yesterday.

(Excerpt) Read more at washingtonpost.com ...


TOPICS: Culture/Society
KEYWORDS: germs; infections; mrsa; sepsis; staph; superbugs
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1 posted on 10/17/2007 6:57:19 AM PDT by zencat
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To: zencat

A local talk show host has a daughter that was hospitalized with this infection. It is everywhere so people take care of you and yours. MRSA is nasty stuff.


2 posted on 10/17/2007 7:02:31 AM PDT by Sunshine Sister
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To: zencat
A dangerous germ that has been spreading around the country causes more life-threatening infections than public health authorities had thought and is killing more people in the United States each year than the AIDS virus, federal health officials reported yesterday.

So, how many research dollars go into fighting this germ, compared to the AIDS research? And since AIDS is 100% preventable, one would think ... Or should I not ask such questions?
3 posted on 10/17/2007 7:07:58 AM PDT by AD from SpringBay (We have the government we allow and deserve.)
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To: zencat
I wonder how many rock stars will do a benefit concert to help fund research on something that is killing more than AIDS in America?

/crickets

4 posted on 10/17/2007 7:12:31 AM PDT by WakeUpAndVote (Got Towel?)
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To: zencat

Saw on the news last night that 100,000 infected in the US last year, 18,000 died!


5 posted on 10/17/2007 7:13:09 AM PDT by AU72
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To: AU72
Saw on the news last night that 100,000 infected in the US last year, 18,000 died!

The health care systems' dirty little secret. More U.S. people died from THAT than died in Iraq and Afghanistan. Where is the outrage?

6 posted on 10/17/2007 7:18:03 AM PDT by madison10 (Trying to buy USA Made Christmas gifts this year? Good luck with that.)
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To: madison10

My wife had it last year during a long hospital stay and almost succumbed.


7 posted on 10/17/2007 7:20:39 AM PDT by AU72
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To: AU72
My wife had it last year during a long hospital stay and almost succumbed.

I am sorry to hear that! Glad that she survived and is still with you. :)

8 posted on 10/17/2007 7:26:07 AM PDT by madison10 (Trying to buy USA Made Christmas gifts this year? Good luck with that.)
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To: zencat; y'all
Understanding MRSA Prevention
9 posted on 10/17/2007 7:28:55 AM PDT by Dysart (Temporarily Unavailable)
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To: barker

I recall that you have seen the effects of this on a family member.


10 posted on 10/17/2007 7:29:25 AM PDT by KC Burke (Men of intemperate minds can never be free...their passions forge their fetters.)
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To: AD from SpringBay
So, how many research dollars go into fighting this germ, compared to the AIDS research? And since AIDS is 100% preventable, one would think ... Or should I not ask such questions? How dare you even ask. Mark Moreford will now pronounce you anathema.
11 posted on 10/17/2007 7:33:51 AM PDT by MrEdd (Ron Paul is Ralph Nader for the right...)
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To: madison10

What does MRSA have to do with Iraq? Your comment doesn’t make any sense.


12 posted on 10/17/2007 7:50:40 AM PDT by ga medic
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To: AU72

My son and his wife had it recently, but neither required hospitalization. They seem to have weathered it pretty well, and granddaughter didn’t get it. She is in pre-school however, and I fear for her. Some schools around this area are closed right now because of outbreaks. DIL is a kindergarten teacher, so the danger is always there.


13 posted on 10/17/2007 7:56:34 AM PDT by WVNan
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To: ga medic
What does MRSA have to do with Iraq? Your comment doesn’t make any sense.

The media and Liberals keep that running tally of how many troops have been killed in the war in both Afghanistan and Iraq, dragging it out every once in a while to make their anti-war point.

This is the FIRST I've heard about the peril from staph and the death rates from it. Who is campaigning to guarantee the sterility of hospitals? Where are the fund-raisers for staph victims?

Get my point yet?

14 posted on 10/17/2007 8:11:32 AM PDT by madison10 (Trying to buy USA Made Christmas gifts this year? Good luck with that.)
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To: madison10

There has been quite a bit of coverage on the threat of MRSA. Sterility in hospitals isn’t the main problem, although lack of sterility in hospitals can make the problem much worse. The problem is that around 25 - 30 percent of people carry staph bacteria on their skin. Combine that with open skin incisions, and patients with compromised immune systems, and there is going to be a problem. It is not a direct result of any decision made or lack of action (for the most part).

The deaths in Iraq and Afghanistan are the direct result (positively or negatively) of the decision to place our soldiers in that country, their assigned mission, rules of engagement, and military strategy. The death toll in Iraq is one way to determine the success or failure of the mission.

You can make a logical argument that the public needs to be better informed about staph infections, and MRSA. But the death tolls in Iraq and cases of bacterial infection are not comparable at all.


15 posted on 10/17/2007 8:40:25 AM PDT by ga medic
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To: Dysart

Thank you for the link. We all need to know of a guaranteed way to protect ourselves from this super-bug.

I believe I must have gotten it at the ‘super-center’. Touching the handle on the cart? Picking up merchandise that others may have handled? Handling money at the register?

I always us a hand sanitizer every time I get into my car - no matter where I have been. The first thing I do when I get home from anywhere, is scrub my hands with soap and hot water.

Yet, I still got it. I am very thankful that the antibiotics are finally working. (Along with prayer).


16 posted on 10/17/2007 9:20:37 AM PDT by yorkie
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To: yorkie
Sorry to hear of your illness, but glad your doing better. And the method of contracting the illness must be a recurring thought...would be for me!

I was at a Sams Club over the wkend and was in the restroom washing my hands, when I heard some guy in one of the stalls carrying on (sounded like he was in labor) when he apparently finished his business and burst out of the stall and bolted for the exit, bypassing that pesky hand washing ordeal. Lack of proper hygiene is a significant contributer to the spread of this and other diseases. I had to resist grabbing this guy by the ear leading him back to the sink. Of course, I didn't want to touch him so...

17 posted on 10/17/2007 10:46:26 AM PDT by Dysart (Temporarily Unavailable)
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To: Dysart

That guy in the restroom at Sam’s club could be the guy that prepares your salad at the restaurant. It’s disgusting!

A doctor discussing this on FNC this morning said that the super-bug (MRSA) can live on inanimated objects for weeks! He recommended hand sanitizer and hand washing to be safer. (Which I do all the time. Go figure.)


18 posted on 10/17/2007 11:24:40 AM PDT by yorkie
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To: Sunshine Sister

The real problem is that they are not telling the truth that this staph infection can be connected to ILLEGAL ALIENS. Mexicans are known for having easy access to antibiotics and not finishing them. This is just another reason to stop the invasion from MEXICO.


19 posted on 10/17/2007 11:27:42 AM PDT by Exton1
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To: Sunshine Sister

The real problem is that they are not telling the truth that this staph infection can be connected to ILLEGAL ALIENS. Mexicans are known for having easy access to antibiotics and not finishing them. This is just another reason to stop the invasion from MEXICO.


20 posted on 10/17/2007 11:27:56 AM PDT by Exton1
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