My Grandfather has just been diagnosed as having MRSA.

[squirrel3]

My Grandfather was admitted into hospital several weeks a go after having a stroke, he is 89 but a fighter, he has now been put into a home where he can have 24hr care.

However when he was admitted the staff noticed that he had a lot of bed sores from being in hospital and they decided to swab them, it come back that he has MRSA.

Does anyone know exactly what this means for him? he is still so weak from the stroke, does it automatically mean the worst?

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Thank you Socci.

My dh's grandmother contracted MRSA a couple of years ago aged 94 after breaking her leg. She recovered completely from it.

Hope your grand-dad feels better soon

Thank you jampots.

MY dad had MRSA several years ago from a hip replacement

And he recovered and had another hip put in

He is fine now

So it can be done

Good luck to your Grandfather

Squirrel - my DSS has thsi after a stay in hospital 2 years ago and thsi is what I understand about it. But I am NOT a nurse or a dr just a mum so please check out things for yourself too.

Its one of these bugs that is around and lots of us might have it but dont know. But if you are old or disabled you are more likely to become colonised by it.It s a particlar form of a common bug that has become resistant to the most common antibiotics but there are still some they can use agaist it. They will probably use these to treat your Gf and he will get rid of it. Even if he doesnt it deos NOT mean " the worst".

BTW he shoudl NOT have lots of bedsores from being in hospital - it means poor nursing care.My DSS has NONE and he is completely immobile. A realtive needs to make a complaint about this. Speak to his Gp or the nurse in change in the nursing home too.

Thank you so much RTKangaMummy, it?s so nice to know that it is treatable, after all of the bad press about it you tend to assume the worst.

Thank you also Kristina, the home that he is now in have got him an 'air mattress' which deflates and inflates periodically which will prevent anymore bedsores. I'm so glad he is out of that hospital, they are claiming that he was clear of MRSA when he left the hospital and there is no MRSA in the hospital, which is rubbish. When GF was admitted into the home they gave him a health check the same day and noticed the bedsores and did the swab immediately so I know he didn't get it from the home!

I'm sure a complaint will follow; in the meantime I just want to make sure GF is receiving the correct treatment and gets better.

My goodness

Hope his bedsores get better soon and the MRSA clears up

Squirrel, you are right, he shouldn't of had pressure sores from his time in hospital. He should have been assessed and put on a mattress like he is now. If the home deems it necessary, the hospital should have definately done so - does that make sense. Ask them to provide evidence of his pressure areas (ie, bottom, ankles, elbows) being assessed, and also a 'waterlow' score. This should have been done, if not every day, at least once or twice a week and should have picked up that he was at risk of pressure sores.

This is what makes me so about all the media attention to MRSA. It is scare mongering about a type of infection that has been around for a long time. The only difference is it has become more difficult to treat. But it is still treatable. The name stands for Methicillin -Resistant Staphaloucocous Aureus excuse the spelling. The SA part is just a form of everyday infection. Methicillin means that it does not respond to many antibiotics.

Many people in normal society carry MRSA in areas such as their nose. It is usually completely harmless. It is more worrying when the bacteria is present in a wound, as in your grandfathers case. It can slow down healing time quite a bit, especially if left untreated. As long as the home is treating the infection, the air mattress and regular, well applied sterile dressing of the wound if required should mean your poor grandfather makes a full recovery. I would definately take up the level of care he recieved in hospital. HTH and try not to worry too much, it sounds as though he is in a very good home.

Thank you Flossam.

squirrel so sorry to hear about ur Grandfather I truely hope things will be ok for him and ur family soon xx

I cannot belive the ammount of MRSA cases I have heard of lately It's Disgraceful!!

Thank you Megandsoph, its comforting to learn through the people on here that it can be treatable though, at first I'd assumed the worst but now I know there is hope for him.

Thank you everyone for your kind messages.

although MRSA is treatable it does take a long time for elderly people to recover from it. I believe it was a factor in the death of one of my relatives, although not the cause of death. Squireel3 have you been advised about the precautions you need to take around your grandfather? It can be transmitted to other people although the risk is not great. You do need to be careful if any visitor has broken skin.

When my relative died we were told to wear protective clothing (apron/ gloves) when visiting in one ward but when they were moved the nurses didn't bother - explained why it gets transmitted! In the nursing home we just wore gloves. Some people used it as an excuse not to visit at all. It was pretty distressing for all of us.

flossam is right, mrsa is treatable. he should be swabbed to check for the right antibiotics to fight it. they are very strong mind you, but can work

mrsa is most often caught just from someone who is colonised by it (there is a surprising no. of people with it in their nose, armpit, etc in the community as a whole) not washing their hands before going near an open wound, such as pressure sores.

this is not necessarily hospital staff! but likely during a dressing change etc

i would be more worried about the pressure sores tbh, they are completely avoidable in this day and age, stroke patients are especially vulnerable and the hospital should have be vigilant at avoiding them. please bring this up with the hospital that is to blame

i hope the pressure sores heal soon. speak to the nurse manager and ask her if they are considering antibiotic treatment. in the mean time they should be turning your grandfather over in his bed 1-2 hrly, avoiding him lying on the pressure sores. a clean sterile dressing should be over them at all times.

mattresses are good too, but turning regularly and not lying on the affected areas is just as effective

hth and dont worry too much

Tatt, I'm so sorry to hear about your relative, it is a very distressing time and I hope that you and your family are coming to terms with what has happened (hard I know, especially as MRSA can be avoided).

To be honest I don't what protective measures are being taken in the home, we had the diagnosis yesterday and DD had to go into hospital yesterday (yes the same hospital!) and I am looking after DGS so I haven't been able to visit (which is driving me mad because I just want to be there for him) but DD needs me too! The home seems to be a good one so I would think they are taking all of the necessary precautions.

Nailpolish thank you for your reply and the information, I know that the home are moving him regularly, the home seems to be much better at nursing care than the hospital!!