Mercer Bacterial Infection

Texas universities prepping for new meningitis prevention law

 AUSTIN -- Among the things 22-year old Jamie Schanbaum has now that she could not have anticipated three years ago are 2 extra inches in height when she stands, a gold medal from the USA Cycling Paralympic Road National Championships and two bills passed by the Texas Legislature in her honor. These gains came after significant losses — most noticeably both legs below the knee and most of each finger, the result of a bout with meningococcal septicemia during her sophomore year at the University of Texas.

Commonly known as bacterial meningitis, meningococcal disease is a potentially fatal bacterial infection that saddles about one-fifth of its survivors with lifelong effects. According to the Department of State Health Services , Texas had 336 cases in 2009, 34 of them in individuals between 15 and 29 years old.

 Schanbaum underwent numerous surgeries during months in the hospital, where the onset of a flesh eating bacteria ultimately necessitated the amputations.

”It could have been worse: I could have been blind, I could have been deaf, I could have had brain damage, I could have died,” Schanbaum said. “I wouldn’t say I feel unlucky at all. I would say I consider this significant.”

The outcome has also been significant for Texas, which — after Gov. Rick Perry signed the second bill named for Schanbaum into law in May — became the first state in the country to require every college student to be vaccinated against bacterial meningitis.

Because of the Jamie Schanbaum Act of 2009, Texas law already required students living in campus dorms to be vaccinated. The new law, which will take effect at the beginning of 2012, expands that provision to apply to any new student under 30 taking on-campus classes, including those living off-campus. While the tweak sounds deceptively simple, it has colleges and universities scrambling — both to raise awareness of and to determine how to implement such a broad policy — and some observers decrying government intrusion.

Mercer Infection - Signs, Symptoms, and Treatments | Infection

Mercer is one of the familiar terms for MRSA (Staphylococcus Aureus MRSA) infection. Initially, the Staphylococcal resistance to antibiotics (particularly penicillin) is unprecedented. However, bacteria can mutate and develop a good resistance against antibacterial drugs, including penicillin, such as Methicillin, as well as against the other beta-lactam antibiotics as Meropenem and clavulanic Tazobactam. In addition, resistance to cephalosporins (such as Cefazolin, cefuroxime, Ceftriaxone) were also studied and documented.

Surprisingly, the causative agent, which causes the MRSA, Staphylococcus Aureus, a natural colonies in the human body. These natural bacterial floras are mainly located in the nostrils. The skin is also a natural paradise for this microbe. Normally, they remain inactive and cause health problems. When immunity is weakening and there is a break in the protective skin integrity, Staphylococcus Aureus has now become pathogenic.

Staph is usually treated with antibiotics, penicillin-class. Often, only penicillin is effective enough. However, certain strains of Staphylococcus had developed an effective resistance and infection mercer sets.

Symptoms and signs

In its early stages, the signs and symptoms are usually the rash and fever. A skin lesion raised, red like a bud, a pustule or a group of Red bumps, is also present. Common topical infection sites are wounds, cuts and abrasions, as well as neck, inside of the thighs, back, inside the arms and hairy part some parts of the body, such as the beard, underarms and groin. Infection may spread to the sebaceous glands or apocrine located on the edge of the eyelid, creating a red, painful, swollen, irritating lump called Sty or stye. As the infection worsens, skin lesions may feel warm because of inflammation and may become more painful, swollen, and larger, which may eventually rupture, creating a deep and purulent abscess.

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