Mrsa!!!

My children have never had MRSA and I know it is a difficult staph bug to get rid of. My advice to you is go for a second opinion about how to treat this condition for your child. It can be frustrating to get conflicting medical opinions on how to treat an ongoing problem. Find a doctor who you have confidence in and one that will test for the root of the problem and not just treat the end results. Call Children's Healthcare of Atlanta for a referral. Good luck.

Hi! I work in an Emergency Room in Atlanta and we see MRSA all of the time. To be honest, it's everywhere. A lot of people have it in one form or another and don't even know it. I don't know of any way to get rid of it other than CONSTANT hand washing. Wash everything he touches, sits on, coughs on, sneezes on, etc. Wash his sheets, pillows, blankets, anything else he sleeps on or with, EVERYDAY. Yes, that will be a huge hassle but that's what you have to do. When you lotion him after a bath, do not touch the lotion bottle after you've touched his skin; that's just contaminating the bottle. Put the lotion on Qtips or tissues and throw them away as soon as they have been used; it will take multiple Qtips or tissues to lotion him all over but that will keep you from contaminating the bottle. Don't touch anything to the bottle that has touched him. You may have to switch antibiotics. This viruses are smart; they become immune to stuff very quickly. These are the few things I can think of. See if there is a pediatric infectious disease doctor who can help with the MRSA. They might have some better reccomendations that your regular pediatrician doesn't. I hope I have helped in some way. Good Luck.

Hi M.,
I'm not sure what your Dr. has told you about mursa but I know a little about it through a continuing education class that I was at a few weeks ago. Your son must have contracted mursa when he had the severe eczyma- because this only attacks those that are sick and very ill. The open sores allows anything to creep into it. One terrible thing is it can be deadly, and you can not treat mursa. Clean your bathrooms, especially tubs and sinks with Clorox bleach. Leave for 10 min or more and rinse really well.
Mursa is a staph infection that can not be treated with any penacillin or augmentin or anything that derives from a bacteria. I'm sure by now you have tried Aveeno sensitive baby wash and lotions. Another thing you can try to treat the bumps is vaseline intensive care(because it is a protective barrier)and put a BIG bandage over the entire area. Instead of bleach baths, try baking soda- it sooths and makes that water really silky and soft.
I understand how this is eating away at you with the unknown. I have a 14 month old girl and she had a really severe outbreak of "eczyma" or "dry-skin" too. But the dr.s did not know what it was and how to treat it. Thankfully, it cleared up after 2 rounds of augmentin and cream that's called locoid lipocream at the summer-end. I hope this this info has been helpful and given you a new route to travel. I'd love to know how you are doing and any improvements.
Take care.
S. Cronin

I had MRSA last year on my face. I saw an infectious disease specialist who prescribed antibiotics. In addition, he had me wash with Hibiclens every day for a month, paying special attention to my armpits and groin, which are two areas that MRSA likes to congregate. Hibiclens is an anti-microbial agent that surgeons scrub their hands with before surgery. You can pick it up at your pharmacy without a prescription. I'd ask your doctor about it as it's not as irritating as the bleach.

My daughter also had a MRSA bump on her rear end last year. Her pediatrician said that 75% of the skin abcesses they see in kids are MRSA. We bathed her with Hibiclens as well. Neither of us have had a reoccurence.

Hi M., I'm so sorry your lttle one is going through this. If you are concerned about the advice you are getting from the doctor and derm, don't hesitate to get a second, even a third opinion. Sometimes we don't want to step on our doctors toes, but if your gut is telling you this procedure may not be best, follow your mind. I have never experienced this in my children however, I subscribe to this magazine called "Babytalk", and it featured an article about a mother who's son experienced the same thing your son is going through. The advice they gave was:

1.) Stay sane about staying clean- a lot of people think you have to be dirty to get an infection, true keeping clean does cut down on germ causing bacteria, however there is no need to get "Monk" syndrome. A few simple rules- if anyone touches your son, they should first wash their hands for 20 seconds (sing your abc's while washing) with soap or use a hand sanitizer containing at least 60% alchohol. Wipe down hard surfaces-cart handles, fast-food tables, and other shared surfaces.

2.) Take care of yourself-as mothers we tend to do for everyone and forget ourselves, don't ignore your needs. Getting enough rest, proper nutrition, and excercise will build your immunity, building your own body's defenses against infections that could be passed on to your son.

3.) Be diligent about your sons vaccines- immunizations against viral diseases will reduce your baby's chance of getting secondary baacterial infections while his immune system is weakened. The same applies for you.

4.)Avoid pressuring your child's doctor for antibiotics- we don't like to see our little ones in pain, so often we may pressure our doctors into prescribing our little ones antibiotics to treat viral infections that are not neccessary. This only adds to more drug resistence strains of viral infections.

5.)Get confirmation- always insist your doctor confirms his/her diagnosis with a culture.

6.) Follow instructions carefully-follow prescribed doses carefully. Some parents tend to stop giving the recommended doses when they see an improvement in their child, don't do fall into this trap. This will only allow the strain to get stronger and adapt to the point that it too will become drug resistent. (these suggestions were outlined from the magazine "Babytalk" May 2008)

As I mentioned earlier,although I have never experienced this with my daughters, I have noticed that natural products such as Cod Liver oil, and Infant's Probiotics, have worked wonders to give my girls a measure of health(since they are natural products,that work with your body by building up it's immunity naturaly). Even the cleaning products I use are natural to prevent any preventable toxins in the air at home (if the natural cleaning products are too expensive, do what our grandmothers, and mothers used to do - clean with baking soda and vinegar). Another thought, ask your child's doctor and derm if bathing your son in a bath mixed with part baking soda/part hydrogen peroxide will help too. (baking soda is a natural skin softner, and hydrogen peroxide is good for killing bacteria).

Oh! I am so irritated they would suggest bleach, it's toxic! I wonder if his body is just trying to rid itself of something. Have you taken him to an allergist? They can run a blood test that checks 90 foods. It could be corn, dairy, tomatoes, chicken, or something simple like that. The Eat Right For Your Blood Type diet correlates well with my, and my daughter's, food sensitivities. My daughter has had minor break outs. No dies, no preservatives, no chemicals/antibiotics in the food. What about your soap and lotion? Make sure they are really pure and no chemicals what so ever. Laundry soap, cleaning supplies (dish soap, rug cleaner,...) also simple ingredients only. Eliminate your perfumes and ask anyone who uses any kind of scent to hold off around your child for awhile. Oh yeah, making sure your deodorant has only natural ingredients and is unscented might help, too.
All of these suggestions will help you support his immune system which sounds compromised by something. Also, chiropractic care can help boost the immune system. Email me if you would like more information.
I hope you find all the answers quite easily.
Blessings!

Hello M.. I work in Resp care at a large hospital here in town. We deal with MRSA on a daily basis. You can go anywhere and find it. It is present in everyone's system to some degree. MRSA is antibiotic resistant in it's true form. I agree with the previous response, find an infectious disease MD in your area for further advice.
More than likely, your other family members already have the bacteria in their systems. MRSA is EVERYWHERE!!!!!!!!!!! There is nothing that you can to do cure it. Once it is in your system, it is there. MRSA is not something that can be cured!! It is something that can be controlled and infected persons lead normal everyday lives without issues.
Try not to be too paronoid, but do try to seek further advice with the situation!!
Good luck!

I read about MRSA on www.mercola.com - good info there. Absolutely stop seeing an MD about this, stop taking antibiotics because this is an immune system issue, and antibiotics destroy the immune system. MRSA is caused by antibiotic overuse and he probably got it from a healthcare facility, it is highly contagious. Of course don't wash him in bleach, whatever you put on the skin enters into the bloodstream and organs, and we all know that bleach is toxic. Instead, stop all antibiotics and start taking large doses of probiotics - I give my kids Kiddi-Flora chewable probiotic. 4 per day or more. That will help build his immune system. And get yourself to a good naturopath or homeopath that can help you boost your son's immune system. If you let me know what town you are in I may be able to recommend. I would also look into changing your diet, not eating any junk or sucralose, and only eating organic meat and dairy, because the regular stuff is pumped with antibiotics and that is bad for the immune system.

Please contact me for my grandaughter went thru the same. I think I will be able to save you alot of grief and time.I have plenty of info to share , because it is so much info we would be better talking. My name is L. and I can be reached by cell 843*###-###-####

M.:
I'm sorry to hear that your son has eczema and MRSA. The laundry detergent has caused the eczema. I know of a laundry detergent that would remove the eczema and it cost 1/3 of what Tide costs. I also know of a lotion and oil that will help the detergent remove the eczema and keep it away. My daughter and I had eczema until we switched to the laundry detergent, the lotion and the oil. We haven't had any eczema for four years. I would love to help you remove your son's eczema. Email me at mamasource.com