Car Accident Injuries Leading to MRSA - St. Louis Car Wreck Attorney
By Christopher Hoffmann
Jan. 30, 2017 10:43a
Car accidents can lead to serious injuries that can leave you hospitalized for days. The pain and suffering these injuries can cause is immense, and to make matters worse, the hospital stay can cause you to contract a deadly bacterial infection known as MRSA. In this post, our St. Louis car wreck attorney will discuss what MRSA is and how a car accident victim can contract this infection.
What is MRSA and how do you contract it?
MRSA or Methicillin-resistant Staphylococcus aureus infections are the result of antibiotic resistant staph bacteria. This infection can be so dangerous that it can cause theMRSA to colonize on the skin and inside the nose. Staph bacteria are harmless until they enter wounds and cause a potentially fatal infection.
These infections are common in hospitals and nursing homes. When the infection occurs in healthcare settings, the condition is known as hospital associated MRSA, which is normally associated with invasive procedures and devices. Those with compromised immune system are at a higher risk of contracting this infection.
There is another type of MRSA known as community associated MRSA, which normally spreads through skin-to-skin contact. Those who work or live in crowded conditions are at a higher risk of developing this condition.
While a car accident cannot directly cause MRSA, but the accident victims can contract the infection if they have to be hospitalized for severe injuries. The infection can spread in various ways including:
- Surgery, the bacteria enters the body through incision site or the wound
- Direct contact with an infection person or through germs in a medical professional
- Indirect contact through dirty linen and other ways
Symptoms of MRSA
The MRSA infection may not develop for days or even weeks after the accident, so the victim may not even associate the symptoms with the crash. However, when the infections develops, it can prove fatal. Some warning signs include:
- Headache
- Fever
- A red bump resembling a pimple or insect bite
- Pus and/or warmness around the infected area
- Shortness of breath
- Fatigue
- Chills
The symptoms quickly turn into something more serious, and the patient may develop painful and deep abscesses that require surgical drainage. If left untreated, MRSA can lead to complications such as:
- Sepsis
- Pneumonia
- Urinary tract infections
- Potentially life-threatening infections in surgical wounds, joints, blood stream, heart valves or lungs
Treatment of MRSA
MRSA is antibiotic resistant so the treatment generally involves IV drips or injections of very strong antibiotics such as Teicoplanin, Vancomycin and Mupirocin.
The patient is often placed in isolation to prevent spread of infection to other patients and parts of body. Unfortunately, the mortality rate for MRSA is high, however, if it is diagnosed at an early stage, it increases the chances of survival.
Recovering compensation for MRSA
The treatment of MRSA can be very costly. Apart from the treatment costs, the cost of isolation rooms can be very high. Moreover, you have to bear considerable pain and suffering.
If your injuries are a result of another driver’s negligence, you may be eligible to recover compensation for all injuries resulting from the accident including subsequent complications such as MRSA. Contact a competent St. Louis personal injury attorney to learn more about your legal rights after a car accident.