posted on Dec, 18 2009 @ 02:31 PM
The simple answer is "a lot." People carry all sorts of bacteria with them all the time, and most of it doesn't make us sick. For example, I happen
to be Group B strep positive. Doesn't make me sick, but when I was pregnant, I had to be super careful because it could have been disastrous for my
unborn daughter.
MRSA can be the same way. It rides around on a healthy person and generally doesn't cause problems. But then again, sometimes it does. Unfortunately,
MRSA cost me some of the hearing in my left ear in 2005. I got an ear infection that didn't respond to first round of antibiotics, so they tried
another one. After that one didn't work either, the doc finally took a culture. Surprise! MRSA. There are a number antibiotics that work on it most
strains of it, but they're not the first line of defense unless MRSA is already suspected. I took a course of one of the effective antibiotics and
the infection cleared up. Unfortunately, by that point the damage had already been done.
When most people hear MRSA, they think of catastrophic infections or open sores. MRSA can cause regular old sinus, ear, or other common infection.
Sometimes the body can fight it off without intervention, and sometimes it can't.
[edit on 18-12-2009 by sweetpeanc]