According to a recent article from the Clinical Infectious Diseases Journal, researchers have found that HIV-positive individuals are at higher risk for contracting community‐associated methicillin‐resistant Staphylococcus aureus (CA‐MRSA).

Methicillin-resistant Staphylococcus aureus is a strain of Staphylococcus aureus bacteria resistant to the many antibiotics usually used to treat related infections.

MRSA infections generally occur in hospital settings. This type of MRSA is known as healthcare-associated MRSA.

CA-MRSA occurs among people in larger communities, and is known to cause skin and soft tissue infections (SSTIs).

In the Cook County Health and Hospitals System, the occurrence of MRSA-related SSTIs was six times as high in HIV-positive patients than in patients without HIV. The incidence of CA-MRSA SSTIs within HIV-infected individuals increased between period 1 (2000–2003) and period 2 (2004–2007).

MRSA-related skin infections usually begin as small red bumps on the body that look like pimples or bug bites. These can rapidly transform into deeper abscesses that require surgical removal.

The bacteria may remain in the skin, or they may travel deeper into the body and affect the bloodstream, heart, or lungs.

MRSAs are a type of of staph bacteria, which are normally found in one-third of the population. However, not all people who have the bacteria become sick, although they can pass the bacteria on to others.

Generally, staph bacteria are harmless, but can cause problems if they enter the body through cuts or wounds. The most serious illnesses from staph bacteria occur in older individuals or those with weak immune systems.

MRSA has become a serious issue in recent years due to the unnecessary overuse of certain antibiotics, which has led to the bacteria becoming resistant to these treatments.

Today, MRSA can still be treated with a few select antibiotics. In other cases, treatment with drugs may not be necessary if the abscesses can be surgically removed.

For more information, please see the Chicago Journals Web site.