Dear Pat,

<<How do you get  a + mom without have exposure to the
infant?>>

Not sure exactly what you are asking here.  I think that in some
cases, if the mom is positive for MRSA she may remain so even
after treatment and discharge from the hospital and her baby will be
exposed eventually anyways.  Or she may be exposed to MRSA in
the hospital, pick up the infection and go home with it without
anyone knowing.  If it eventually makes her or her baby sick, then
she will be diagnosed and treated with antibiotics.  Or the hospital
may discover that there was a MRSA + patient or employee in
house and do a look back to check to see if others have been
infected.  But she may just become a carrier and never become ill,
but pass it on to others.  The baby may or may not become
positive as well. It is also possible that the baby could pick up the
infection in the hospital (not from mom), go home with it and then
infect mom.

This all sounds kind of confusing, but that is how these little
buggers get around in ever increasing numbers.  And then when
they are attacked with even stronger antibiotics, if a few mutate
and survive, then they can go on propagating and an even more
resistant strain will emerge.  In fact, there are a few recorded
instances of new strains of bacteria which seem to be resistant to
all known antibiotics - pretty scary.

This is why antibiotics should only be used when absolutely
necessary - to fight bacterial, not viral, infections.  They should be
used long enough and in the proper strength to have a good chance
of killing off all of the bacteria present.  If not, the surviving bugs
may become more resistant and off we go.  The same thing is
happening in agriculture where many insects are becoming
resistant to the commonly used pesticides - the wisdom of organic
farming is finally beginning to dawn on the establishment which has
thumbed their noses at it for so long. Of course, it is also leading
to genetic engineering.......

hope this helps.

Warmly,
Sharon Knorr, BSMT, LLLL, IBCLC
Newark, NY (near Rochester) USA
mailto:[log in to unmask]

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