MRSA in Veterinary Practice.
Posted on Thursday, November 25 @ 14:21:27 GMT by jenvetadmin
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jenvetnurse writes "We have all heard of MRSA but in general the cases are found in hospitals.
The disease is known to kill around 5,000 patients every year in UK hospitals.
There have been cases reported in Veterinary Practices and the topic has been in the Veterinary news of late.
We all know about zoonotic diseases such as Cat Scratch Fever (Bartonellosis), Leptospirosis, Salmonella, Avian Chlamydiosis and so on.
The risks of developing such a disease increases in dirty, poorly-managed practices due to infected animals not being barrier nursed/isolated, improper hygiene regimes and also staff personal hygiene and awareness. These diseases can cause illnesses ranging from mild to severe.
However MRSA is a totally different case – MRSA invariably results in loss of limbs/death. MRSA is a relatively new threat to us and all cases apparently do stem from hospitals. Whether a client works in hospital, or has visited a relative in hospital – the trails always leads to this one source.
MRSA stands for Methicillin-resistant strains of Staphylococcus aureus.
Fortunately zoonotic transmission of MRSA has yet to be reported although it is only a question of time. Those with a reduced immunity are more at risk and contract the disease via an open wound.
However there have been many reported cases of dogs and horses dying from MRSA.
So what can be done to avoid MRSA in practice? Having good standards of hygiene throughout, separate mops/buckets for different areas of the practice, using a high level disinfectant, taking care not to over-prescribe antibiotics, ensuring animals with infections are isolated and strictly barrier nursed and regularly swabbing infected wounds to check for MRSA.
If you have any interesting comments or views on this subject please discuss in the forums or submit your article for the home page.
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