MRSA
- This is a preview of the essay.
To view the full text you must login!
MRSA stands for methicillin resistant Staphylococcus aureus. It is a bacterium that has developed a resistance to most antibiotics commonly used for Staphylococcus infections. Staphylococcus or staph is a genus of round, parasitic bacteria, commonly found in air and water and on the skin and upper part of the human pharynx. These bacteria are known to cause pneumonia and septicemia as well as boils and kidney and wound infections.
There are two common types of staph; staphylococcus aureus and staphylococcus epidermis. Penicillin was once effective for the treatment and control of staph, however with MRSA this antibiotic is no longer effective.
Patients who have infections are treated with antibiotics to cure the infection. Use of antibiotics over a period of time, perhaps even years, can cause the pathogen (germ) to change its composition. The cells of the pathogen change to prevent the antibiotic from attaching to its target within the bacteria, thus protecting it. The result of this protective process is called antibiotic resistance...