MRSA

[smhufflepuff]

okay folks... my little guy has methicillin-resistent coagulase negative staph. MRSA. I'm a little, um, not quite knowing what to say...

They tried 19 different antibiotics... only one killed it. I forget the name of it already as I hadn't heard of it before. Apparently, it's extraordinarily hard on the kidneys. And clinics in town don't have it. And it's not easy to get as it's on backorder...

Per his vet, not only am I to worry about Satin, but we humans as well. Gloves to handle him... Of course, I've been handling him without this whole time. And he's been pissed over the Baytril. Pissed to the point he bit me. He is not a biter. And he's snotted me plenty. And, of course, the vomit...

Going to get a little paranoid here for a bit... envision doom, gloom, death, etc... for him, Satin, me, hubby, and kids... *panic* *panic*

His vet's checking with other specialists.

Will work on lowering my heart rate now...

 

[leni]

Was the antibiotic Vancomycin? As for the MRSA, yeah, it can be pretty scary, but I think in an otherwise healthy individual you should be okay. Just follow the precautions now just to be safe now that you know what he has. I hope he gets better soon and that you guys are safe. I wonder how he got it? That's usually something hospital acquired, although I have heard it is on the rise now in the community.

 

[smhufflepuff]

Was the antibiotic Vancomycin? As for the MRSA, yeah, it can be pretty scary, but I think in an otherwise healthy individual you should be okay. Just follow the precautions now just to be safe now that you know what he has. I hope he gets better soon and that you guys are safe.

I don't think it was vancomycin... I've heard of that one before and what she named didn't ring a bell. Though with the trade names and generic names... who knows.

I can't believe I'm going to pick him up with kitchen gloves tonight... and no snuggle-time :cry3:

I wonder how he got it? That's usually something hospital acquired, although I have heard it is on the rise now in the community.

We can't figure that part either. It's not like he gets out of the house or goes visiting. The only thing we can think, so far, is if one of us humans has it and gave it to him. But, then, how are we healthy... or healthy-appearing?

 

[ABBY W.]

Unfortunately, MRSA can sometimes remain in the body dormant, and then presents itself when your immune system is weakened due to something else, like surgery or illness. It is usually found most frequently in hospital patients, but sometimes it can be picked up in public places.

MRSA is transmittable to humans, and there are some strains that do not respond to antibiotics. You should definitely take precautions when handling him. Wear gloves at all times and change your clothes afterwards. I would recommend not letting your children have contact with him, if possible.

 

[leni]

Unfortunately, MRSA can sometimes remain in the body dormant, and then presents itself when your immune system is weakened due to something else, like surgery or illness. It is usually found most frequently in hospital patients, but sometimes it can be picked up in public places.

MRSA is transmittable to humans, and there are some strains that do not respond to antibiotics. You should definitely take precautions when handling him. Wear gloves at all times and change your clothes afterwards. I would recommend not letting your children have contact with him, if possible.

Agreed.

 

[Nancy]

Wow! I don't even know what to say. How would he get MRSA and if this is something that can remain dormant, I wonder if it's something from where he came from and could affect other Tweeds. This is scarey. I totally understand your fears.

 

[mercynursie]

Okay buckle in and hang on for the ride!! First of all MRSA is a widespread bacteria.It pretty much developed as a result of over/under/improper use of antibiotics.It can be found in the cultures of perfectly healthy folks in the community,not just healthcare folks.Yes it is nasty to deal with and almost impossible to ever get rid of it (as per my Mom's infectious disease specialist who treated her). First rule 1) Don't panic! 2)Invest in bleach.Use it diluted for cleaning anything that is bleach safe.As far as anything else goes the rule of thumb we go by here is "If it's wet and it ain't yours-don't touch it"! If you have any cuts/open areas keep them covered.Contact your family physician and see if they recommend Bactroban Ointment(prescription only in USA) to be applied with q tip to inside of nose twice a day for all family members.Some docs do,some docs don't. Otherwise just use old fashioned good handwashing and cleaning.I firmly believe that it is our society's own fault for producing these superbugs by using antibiotics/antimicrobials everywhere in our daily living.We are wiping out our own natural immunity.Just my opinion though.

 

[smhufflepuff]

Okay, I'm working on rule #1... Satin's sniffly this morning. We have a call in to the vet...

I have so many open cuts on my hands - winter dry skin - I think I'd need to wrap them entirely. So far, I've started using kitchen gloves with Tex and his stuff. Maybe Satin now too. Gah!

Hedgiedaddy put a call into our human doctor. We're not showing any signs that we can see. But he figures IF Satin also has it and the two hedgie's don't interact, nor do they share belongings or even the same room in the house, then at least one of us must already be colonized for this to be spreading.

So... we'll see what next steps are in both the veterinary and human medicine world later today. I have the bleach out... will need to run to the store to get more. Maybe some longer gloves... little ones like to nestle in our elbows.

For now, I'm hoping that since we got both hedgies through giardia without any humans contracting it, perhaps we'll make it through this unscathed? But... again... possible transmission to Satin?? Nutterbutter.

 

[smhufflepuff]

Okay, just got a call from the vet. We have a plan:

The only med of the 19 tested that successfully treated the MRSA under lab conditions was amikacin. It is available only by injection and will possibly kill Tex by blowing out his kidneys.

One drug that was not tested, but has been successful in other cases, and will be added to the testing line-up is gentamicin. We are going to try to apply this topically to eyes and nose. Both hedgies.

We'll look for decrease in appetite and lethargy. If those occur, then we'll need to switch to the amikacin for Tex, do the full-scale c&s for Satin, and pray that the treatment doesn't kill both the bacteria and hedgie.

 

[shetland]

I hope everything is going well with hedgies and family?

 

[smhufflepuff]

Update on the quill-kids:

They both still have runny noses... more wet than actually dripping out. Maintaining weight (Satin at 645g and Tex at 367g), running, pooping, peeing, etc... Though I think they're maintaining weight differently: both eating less kibble and running less in a way that balances for now.

Tex has nice logs; Satin alternate between logs and messy natural peanut butter texture poops. They're both a bit more huffy than usual, but are willing to snuggle with Hedgiedaddy and me while we're wearing double shirts and gloves.

Received a call from their vet:

Bad thing... reviewing more sensitivity tests... there's nothing other than the amikacin that even touches the MRSA. Not even a little. So my little buddies really are holding their own looking only slightly worse for wear.

The amikacin has not yet arrived. I haven't decided how I feel about that.

 

[smhufflepuff]

picked up the amikacin

Last evening, I posted how their noses were more wet than dripping as they had been. Tex had to contradict me just a few hours later... dripped right out of his little nose *sigh*

Their amikacin arrived today and I picked it up. Talked with their vet too.

Good news: we will not be injecting at this time. Instead, we'll be giving them drops to the nose & eyes and nebulizing the meds. The nebulized form includes Tricide (something meanie had mentioned to me) which should help out a bunch. Vet (and consulting vet's) thought is that, if we can keep away from the more systemic approach (ie, injections), it shouldn't be problematic for their kidneys. Yippee!

However, if this approach doesn't work, then we're stuck with the injection route.

Let's hope this works!!! I think we all miss snuggle-time something fierce.

 

[leni]

Fingers crossed that this works and they get better soon for snuggle time!

 

[Nancy]

Continuing prayers that the nebulized meds ARE going to work. Give them both plus yourself and Hedgiedaddy hugs from me.

 

[charlie]

Keeping our quills crossed here as well. Thanks for the updates.

 

[menagerie]

Fingers crossed the meds work.

 

[Kalandra]

Fingers & quills are crossed here!

 

[smhufflepuff]

Thanks much.

So far, first round of new antibiotics went well... Or at least not any worse than the previous attempts (ie, squirmy little hedgies vs patient & persistent hedgiemommy).

They both look to have eaten well last night and wheeled up a storm.

 

[SpineyPigFaceLover]

Wow, I didn't even know hedgies could get MRSA. I hope they get better and these treatments work. I will be following this thread!

 

[smhufflepuff]

Wow, I didn't even know hedgies could get MRSA.

Yeah, after my little guy was diagnosed, I started searching and saw a thread by thistlesmom who noted both she and her hedgie have/had MRSA. I don't think she's been on the boards since November though to hear more about her experience.

From what I'm hearing, it seems rather uncommon for a hedgie to have MRSA. Or, perhaps it's more common than we know, but just not properly diagnosed... but, even with that possibility, I still think we're talking pretty small numbers.