Today is World MRSA Day—My Story Might Save a Life

On April 28, 2016, my then 15-year-old son, Paul woke up with a dull pain in his ankle. 

The day prior, Paul, the school’s baseball team’s shortstop, took a nasty dive that resulted in an open wound. As the day went on, his pain grew worse, and by evening, he couldn’t walk. A visit to the ER revealed a sprained ankle and possible hairline fracture. The next morning, Paul had a high fever, extreme shaking, sweating and chills, and was in agonizing pain. After another ER visit, doctors quickly recognized Paul had a systemic infection. 

Paul transferred to a children’s hospital, where he tested positive for a Staph infection, later determined to be methicillin-resistant Staphylococcus aureus, or MRSA, a type of bacteria that causes infections in different parts of the body. 

Over the next two weeks, Paul underwent two surgeries, daily intravenous sedation for wound care, lost all mobility of his ankle and lost 20 pounds.

Today is World MRSA Day, and October is World MRSA Awareness Month. While Paul won his battle with MRSA, many are not as fortunate. MRSA is a global epidemic and public health crisis that is quickly becoming resistant to many available antibiotics. Paul’s MRSA was recognized early and appropriately treated with penicillin, a type of antibiotic used to treat a broad range of infections. But many patients today are often misdiagnosed as allergic to penicillin. Without effective therapies like penicillin, MRSA will sicken and kill many more people. 

MRSA can be found anywhere. It’s spread in the community and in healthcare facilities. According to the Sepsis Alliance, Staphylococcus aureus is a common bacteria that lives on our skin and, most of the time, causes few problems unless a break in the skin – a cut or puncture, for example – allows the staph to enter the body.

World MRSA Day seeks to raise awareness and education about MRSA and routine screening that can save lives. Our family was incredibly lucky, and for that I am grateful. With prompt care, early recognition of the infection and appropriate treatment, my son recovered fully. Penicillin saved his life. 

There are many ways we can prevent this infection from harming others. Let’s start by encouraging healthcare providers to consider routine penicillin skin testing to patients who report a history of penicillin allergy. Patients who think they are allergic should discuss testing with their healthcare providers. It might one day save a life.

Please read more about World MRSA Day in the link here.