coltsfan715
New member
Hey Lilith,
I have cultured MRSA for about 8-10 years now. I am not sure when exactly I first cultured the MRSA, but I know it was in that time frame. I cultured MRSA right away - there was no progression from Staph to MRSA.
For the first several years that I began culturing MRSA I was treated with Bactrim. I would go one month on TOBI one month off TOBI for Psuedo and in the off month of TOBI I would take the Bactrim. I never really felt better taking the Bactrim. I asked the doctor about that because all of my cultures indicated that the MRSA I cultured was sensitive to Bactrim. The docs response, and the response of each doc I have had since then, was that in labs it is shown that Bactrim is effective at treating MRSA but it has "lackluster" results when actually put into use by giving it to a patient.
I had to stop taking TOBI due to hemoptysis at around 20 - and when I switched to adult care at 21 my new doc took me off of the Bactrim. Before I turned 21 I was hospitalized roughly once every 10-12 months, and when I was hospitalized the dominant bug I cultured was Psuedo. Since I turned 21 the dominant bug I have cultured at EACH and EVERY hospital stay has been MRSA. I personally have come to think that the Bactrim was helping to keep the MRSA under control. Not that the Bactrim every completely took care of the problem but it kept it at a manageable level.
Since I have been hospitalized and had more issues with the MRSA - that has at times morphed into a lesser resistant form of Staph - I have taken Vancomycin and Zyvox. I prefer Zyvox for the simple reason that it makes me feel better faster and I don't get all the funky side effects I get from Vancomycin. Vancomycin in VERY harsh on my body at times. I have been told by my new pulmo that there is an aerosolized form of Vanco that he may try to give me in the future because he said it is thought to be more effective than the IV form - I do not know though because I have never taken it in an aerosol.
I typically do not run fevers like you mentioned - but that is in general I have NEVER been one to run massive fevers. I do notice a gunkier cough - that is a different consistency. I can even tell when what I have coughed up is mostly MRSA vs. just normal phlegmy psuedo filled crap. For me my sputum with MRSA is more fluidlike and just seems to be never ending when I have a flare up, there is a horrendous taste that never seems to go away (even with brushing and mouthwash), my sputum is also a dark greyish green at those times. When I have Psuedo flareups my sputum is normally a darker yellow. I also tend to be nauseous more often when I have a MRSA flare up.
Once I started getting hospitalized for MRSA flare ups I was going in the hospital about 2 times a year. Now that I am at my new doc I am going in the hospital for scheduled visits every 3-4 months. I normally feel pretty good for a few weeks after hospital stays and then by 1 month out have started coughing junk up again. I am not sure if that will change and I will be able to maintain good health for a longer time since I have had sinus surgery though. I will find out in the coming months (I am on IVs now for 10 more days and had sinus surgery 1 week ago). I normally cough up nasty stuff all the time and only get really concerned and request meds if I start to lose my appetite, notice that I am coughing up alot more than usual or if the cough sounds noticeably gunkier, waking up at night coughing, and if it get alot darker the usual or if the taste is getting worse.
It is possible that you may have already been in a compromised state with your health when the MRSA started to flare up and that is why you have gotten so sick. Then again bacteria effect each person differently so maybe this is just how it effects you. You will just have to pay attention to your body over time and come to that conclusion on our own.
Take Care and I hope you get to feeling better,
Lindsey
I have cultured MRSA for about 8-10 years now. I am not sure when exactly I first cultured the MRSA, but I know it was in that time frame. I cultured MRSA right away - there was no progression from Staph to MRSA.
For the first several years that I began culturing MRSA I was treated with Bactrim. I would go one month on TOBI one month off TOBI for Psuedo and in the off month of TOBI I would take the Bactrim. I never really felt better taking the Bactrim. I asked the doctor about that because all of my cultures indicated that the MRSA I cultured was sensitive to Bactrim. The docs response, and the response of each doc I have had since then, was that in labs it is shown that Bactrim is effective at treating MRSA but it has "lackluster" results when actually put into use by giving it to a patient.
I had to stop taking TOBI due to hemoptysis at around 20 - and when I switched to adult care at 21 my new doc took me off of the Bactrim. Before I turned 21 I was hospitalized roughly once every 10-12 months, and when I was hospitalized the dominant bug I cultured was Psuedo. Since I turned 21 the dominant bug I have cultured at EACH and EVERY hospital stay has been MRSA. I personally have come to think that the Bactrim was helping to keep the MRSA under control. Not that the Bactrim every completely took care of the problem but it kept it at a manageable level.
Since I have been hospitalized and had more issues with the MRSA - that has at times morphed into a lesser resistant form of Staph - I have taken Vancomycin and Zyvox. I prefer Zyvox for the simple reason that it makes me feel better faster and I don't get all the funky side effects I get from Vancomycin. Vancomycin in VERY harsh on my body at times. I have been told by my new pulmo that there is an aerosolized form of Vanco that he may try to give me in the future because he said it is thought to be more effective than the IV form - I do not know though because I have never taken it in an aerosol.
I typically do not run fevers like you mentioned - but that is in general I have NEVER been one to run massive fevers. I do notice a gunkier cough - that is a different consistency. I can even tell when what I have coughed up is mostly MRSA vs. just normal phlegmy psuedo filled crap. For me my sputum with MRSA is more fluidlike and just seems to be never ending when I have a flare up, there is a horrendous taste that never seems to go away (even with brushing and mouthwash), my sputum is also a dark greyish green at those times. When I have Psuedo flareups my sputum is normally a darker yellow. I also tend to be nauseous more often when I have a MRSA flare up.
Once I started getting hospitalized for MRSA flare ups I was going in the hospital about 2 times a year. Now that I am at my new doc I am going in the hospital for scheduled visits every 3-4 months. I normally feel pretty good for a few weeks after hospital stays and then by 1 month out have started coughing junk up again. I am not sure if that will change and I will be able to maintain good health for a longer time since I have had sinus surgery though. I will find out in the coming months (I am on IVs now for 10 more days and had sinus surgery 1 week ago). I normally cough up nasty stuff all the time and only get really concerned and request meds if I start to lose my appetite, notice that I am coughing up alot more than usual or if the cough sounds noticeably gunkier, waking up at night coughing, and if it get alot darker the usual or if the taste is getting worse.
It is possible that you may have already been in a compromised state with your health when the MRSA started to flare up and that is why you have gotten so sick. Then again bacteria effect each person differently so maybe this is just how it effects you. You will just have to pay attention to your body over time and come to that conclusion on our own.
Take Care and I hope you get to feeling better,
Lindsey