In an effort to talk people off of the ledge, I thought I'd post the following:
Klefbom has staph infection from a "lace bite" (
source.)
So, what is a CA-MRSA infection, why does he have it, and what's the likely prognosis?
"In the past, MRSA infected people who had chronic illnesses. But now MRSA has become more common in healthy people. These infections can occur among people who have scratches, cuts, or wounds and who have close contact with one another, such as members of sports teams. This type of MRSA is called community-associated methicillin-resistant Staphylococcus aureus (CA-MRSA)." (
link)
"Community-associated MRSA commonly causes skin infections, such as boils, abscesses, or cellulitis. Often, people think they have been bitten by a spider or insect."
You could Google what this looks like, but, I'd recommend not.
"Most cases of community-associated methicillin-resistant Staphylococcus aureus (CA-MRSA) begin as mild skin infections such as pimples or boils. Your doctor may be able to treat these infections without antibiotics by using a minor surgical procedure that opens and drains the sores."
If there are sores, the common approach is to surgically open or lance the sores, draining the pus.
You could Google what this looks like, but, I'd recommend not.
If he presents with just cellulitis, he's likely being treated with Vancomycin.
He's likely treating parts of his body with Mupirocin. Common recommendation is for nasal decolonization, given twice a day for 5 to 10 days. He likely has to bath in a bleach solution for 10 minutes at a time.
Now, for the bad news:
"Among 244 participants with one-month colonization data, modified intention-to-treat analysis revealed S. aureus eradication in 38% of participants in the education only (control) group; 56% in the mupirocin group (p=0.03 vs. controls); 55% in the mupirocin/chlorhexidine group (p=0.05); and 63% in the mupirocin/bleach group (p=0.006). Of 229 participants with four-month colonization data, eradication rates were 48% in controls; 56% for mupirocin only (p=0.40 vs. controls); 54% for mupirocin/chlorhexidine (p=0.51); and 71% for mupirocin/bleach (p=0.02). At one and four months, respectively, recurrent SSTI was reported by 20% and 36% of participants." (
link)
Klefbom likely falls into the 39% that weren't eradicated in the four months. He'll continue the protocol, and try to eradicate it. The good news, and I'll post an addendum, is that while recurrent PC-MSRA is difficult to eradicate, it can be done.