Swimmers at Beach Risk Infection
New York – Those idle swims in tropical waters may not be as inviting with 37 percent of those swimming on Florida’s coasts diagnosed with staph and 3 percent with Methicillin-resistant Staphylococcus aureus, MRSA. In addition, sub-tropical waters such as Mediterranean, Florida and California have been found to have the same problem.
While the most susceptible have been identified as children, sick, elderly and those with impaired or lowered immune systems, staff infections affect everyone. Symptoms include a red bump or spot that is swollen, painful, warm to the touch and full of pus.
Research is necessary to determine the life span of staph and MRSA in oceans, the associated risks of infection, and the percentage of beach infections.
Showering with plenty of soap both before and after swimming in those waters can lower the possibility of infection by protecting both the swimmer and fellow swimmers.
Researchers claim that many major medical complications associated with skin reported by emergency room patients can be attributed to MRSA, with thousands affected each year and approximately 19,000 deaths. Significant increases of new strains of potentially more aggressive MRSA have been noted in the last 10 to 12 years in large numbers of healthy people, indicating apparent infection from their own communities. MRSA strains have been found in schools, gyms, and homes for the elderly.
A simple rule of thumb for staying clear of MRSA infection: Swim in chlorinated pools, although health officials say with reasonable caution costal swimming is still safe.