Essay about Effects of MRSA

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Super Bug
Clayton Reese
Texas A&M University- Texarkana

Abstract
Methicillin-resistant staphylococcus Aureus(MRSA) is a type of staphylococcus infection that has evolved throughout time to be resistant to most common anti-biotic used to kill the infection. The paper will explore what has caused to infection to evolve at such a rapid pace and what scientists are doing to solve the problem. It also looks into the symptoms and facts on how you should treat MRSA if infected and where/who would be most likely to become infected.

SUPER BUG
Hospitals are a place to go for treatment when you are sick or injured in some way. Some viruses and bacteria are able to adapt to the treatments and vaccinations hospitals use to keep the masses healthy. Like the flu virus, Staphylococcus bacterium has evolved throughout the 1900s so that it could beat certain medicines used to rid it from the body overtime. Methicillin-resistant staphylococcus Aureus(MRSA) is now responsible for more deaths per year than AIDS causing an average of twenty thousand deaths per year since 2007 (The Journal of the American Medical Association). Methicillin-resistant staphylococcus Aureus (MRSA) is a form of staphylococcus that causes an infection that is resistant to antibiotics commonly used to treat staphylococcus infections. Despite the recent emergence of MRSA in the newspapers and media for being so deadly, staph infections have been proven to be abundant and lethal since the mid 1800’s (Kolindi, 2010). For the longest time the mortality rate of staph infections was very high until they discovered the world of antibiotics. In 1940 penicillin was created and the mortality rate swiftly fell. It wasn’t until two years later a new strain of staphylococcus was discovered that was immune to penicillin. Therefore scientists went to work again for another twenty years as the mortality for this penicillin resistant strain of Staphylococcus started to steadily rise. Then in 1960 researchers developed a drug similar to penicillin called methicillin that the new strain of staph could not fight (Kolindi, 2010). Unfortunately one year later cases started to appear for a new strain of staph that was resistant to the new methicillin (Kolindi, 2010). Now in 2012 there are many different strains of MRSA and most are resistant to commonly used antibiotics used to treat the majority of infections. The evolution of the bacterium happens in places where antibiotics were commonly distributed therefore it is very common to see new strains develop in hospital settings. This is unfortunate because the people with the highest risk of becoming infected are those with weak immune systems. Another reason why MRSA is so dangerous, other than its resilience to common antibiotics, is because it is extremely contagious. Although only one percent of the population (not infected) are carriers of the bacterium, MRSA bacterium can live on the surface of basically anything for days, week, and even months depending on the environment (Kallen,2010). The most common places to find the bacterium are in hospitals, locker rooms, nursing homes, and college dorms (Kallen,2010). It is common to see more than one person get infected if one person contracts the infection in these environments because of the fact it is that contagious. People at the highest risk to become infected usually reside in these areas. What starts out as a small ingrown hair or spider bite can take a violent turn for the worst if people are not careful. It can also infect open wounds, blood, lungs, and urine. MRSA develops and grows and a speedy pace. Once infected with MRSA it will not take very long for the carrier to notice a large amount of pressure in and around the area infected. Many high school football games have been canceled because of MRSA outbreaks in their locker rooms; In fact the Tampa Bay Buccaneers canceled a week’s worth of practice due to an
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