Hi kids ...

Diagnosis: I had a staph infection in my right knee (read below)

I think I might have had a bout of staph-related MRSA, but I won't know for sure until the end of the week when the culture diagnosis returns.

How do I believe I got MRSA? Let me tell you --

I was on vacation in Orlando in late October and near the end of my stay at Disney, I went to Animal Kingdom to close the park down. At the 8pm close and after riding Expedition Everest 10 times, I had to go to the bathroom. So I did and got a drink of water.

I immediately turned around to walk toward the entrance, and waked right into a palm tree landscape thing. Hit my right knee hard, skinned my right shin, and skinned my left index finger, and fell into the bed. After getting out, I flagged down a cast member and she helped me with some bandaids and cleaned my finger wound.

I left the park, did the rest of my vacation with some soreness in my right knee, and returned to Toledo. Oh, I did Disney solo and walked 35-40 miles around Disney and Universal property. I had a wonderful time -- my first Central Florida trip in over 14 years.

Little did I know that something started to grow near my knee. Fast-forward to Monday Nov. 19. I was at FOX Toledo and before I left for the night, I noticed my right leg felt funny and I had a slight-pained limp. Got home, checked out my knee and saw it was the size of a baseball/softball/grapefruit. Went to the UToledo medical campus emeregency room and after 5 hours of waiting an X-rays and a partial knee drain, the ER doc said I had some kind of virus inside. So I was given scripts for pain and an antibiotic.

Mom and dad took care of me Thanksgiving weekend and by Monday I was walking okay. Sunday my knee started leaking since it was red and raw (from my clothes). I went to ortho for an appointment and the lead ortho doc took one look and said, "traumatic bursitis." He said I need surgery to remove whatever is inside my knee and went out of the room. He came back with a syringe and drew a reddish-puss-filled sample of something nasty.

The nurse patched me up, wrapped up my knee, and I was told surgery would be Tuesday afternoon. I got my neighbor to be my sponsor to take care of me at the hospital and I worked one more day at the tv station before the surgery.

The surgery went well and I was told that in order for my knee to recover from whatever was inside me -- staph?? MRSA ??? -- my wound would be open and packed. Yeah, I know you can stop reading here if you want to.

So the doc put me on orders to stay at home and do not drive, etc, and just rest. My 4-day air force guard weekend is now a wash and I missed another day at the station. But my tv staff friends understand and can't wait for my return, which should be early next week. Hopefully by next Monday, Dec. 3 the doc will get to close up my knee and I can start rehab. I want to get back to aerobics and all.

Oh, vicodin is a nice painkiller but I need some more of it as I will need to dress my open wound BY MYSELF in the next few days (after the care nurse stops helping me).

Pray that I did not have MRSA.

Timmy / a2grafix
[Edited 11/28/07 17:16pm]
[Edited 11/29/07 15:52pm]

OMG Tim! I hope the medicine and surgery get a grip on this!

SupaFunkyOrgangrinderSexy said:

Thank you Richie. I just hope it is not MRSA and I hope that the doctor knew what he wanted in doing the surgery. I hope surgery was not needed but now me and my dad will get to compare knee scars.

EEWWWWW!!!

i just got off a month long antibiotic course for MRSA. i feel ya pain

My friend had/has it and was very very ill...but she's on the mend and doing much better.

My son contracted MRSA in the summer of 2006. He was 3 at the time. He got it from his cousin. No one knew my nephew had it. It was a totally innocent thing. It was very scary and very painful. My son had to be put to sleep and have his wound cleaned out at a pediatric ER.

One thing I'd advise you is that if it does turn out to be MRSA get tested to see if you are a carrier.

After my nephew got it 2 more times...poor baby...they tested him and he was a carrier. He was then placed on antibiotics for several months to get rid of it. It's a simple test. They swab the nose.

Good luck and I'm glad you're on the mend.

hokie1 said:

Hokie ... I will remember that in getting tested to see if I am a carrier. But I think a portion of the soil from my fall into the landscaping thing somwhow got into my bloodstream. But I will know for sure Thursday, if not Friday, from the doctor's office.

Thanks everyone. I'm strong. I should be fine soon. As for getting back to running, not so sure.

a2grafix said:

i don't know if the same thing is true for you or not, i'm HIV+, but i was told that now that i've had it once i would get it again from time to time.

be sure to ask your doctor if that applies to you as well so you aren't surpised if it comes back.

OK, is this like from an injury, scrape, scratch or cut or can this be like an internal infection?

I hope you're OK.

Keep us posted, I hope you get a clean bill of health and that you don't have MRSA.

Sounds like you've been through a lot. Hope you feel better soon.

On a similar note.....I got a very bad infection in my finger from eating crab legs. My Dr. agrees that's how I got it. I was eating a feast of crab legs and one little bugger pricked me and my finger started to bleed. Two days later my finger was itchy as hell and swollen. My nail is about ready to fall off now and once it does a new one will grow back and it should be fine. I hope

Empress said:

Damn! Crab legs, potting soil. Like is the human race doomed or what? Jeez!

SupaFunkyOrgangrinderSexy said:

both, though if it becomes internal it's often fatal. 2 years ago someone i knew from the Leather Scene died from MRSA.

ehuffnsd said:

Damn! Can this be avoided by like dunking your wounds in bleach or something when it happens? Dang, this is really scary. This is like the super staph infection right?

SupaFunkyOrgangrinderSexy said:

As a matter of fact, I know a co-worker who got a very nasty infection from potting soil and my own mother got something much worse from handling raw meat. Wash your hands with soap and hot water folks.

SupaFunkyOrgangrinderSexy said:

Si

Empress said:

Potting soil!?! Is that because of fecal matter or something?

ehuffnsd said:

yes on which part? super infection, or disinfecting wounds as soon as they happen or both?

SupaFunkyOrgangrinderSexy said:

Not sure, but this is what she told me. She saw my finger and asked if I got it from gardening or planting and I told her it was from crab legs and she told me hers was from potting soil.

SupaFunkyOrgangrinderSexy said:

MRSA = is restiant to all anitbioitoics in the Penicillin family. and the superinfection.

it started out as just an infection transmitted in the Hospitbal but has quickly moved into the general population. Worst places to pick it up are bathouses, gyms, bathrooms, areas with large amount of contact with skin or sweat.

SupaFunkyOrgangrinderSexy said:

Oregano Oil directly on the site is likely anyones best bet.

A care nurse came to my home Thursday to help me "learn" how to dispose of and add a new "wet-dry" bandage.

Karen the care nurse told me that the culture came back as staph aeoral or something like that, but regardless I got a staph infection. Thank goodness it's not MRSA.

I was also given some interesting news in that if the doctor and insurance company agree, the care nurse says I might receive something called a vaccum cell-excellerator or something. It's basically a vaccum that regenerates the cells of the wound quicker, in like 2 or 3 weeks time.

But as it stands right now I will not get my wound sewn up. It's a no-no, but I will learn more on Monday. Hopefully by the new year I can get back to exercising and doing some light aerobic fitness. As for running, not sure.

edit - vicodin daze
[Edited 11/29/07 19:11pm]

a2grafix said:

glad it sounds like things are going to work out well for you.

a2grafix said:

What you have is MRSA without the resitance to Methocillin antibiotics. make sure you take the meds as directed. Did they give Dococillin? Also be sure to stay out of direct sunlight.
[Edited 11/29/07 15:58pm]

ehuffnsd said:

Vicodin for pain and Bactrim DS is the antibiotic. Taking them like clockwork, although Tuesday evening and overnight I took more than I needed, but I was coming out of recovery. Since then, following the scripts to the letter.

a2grafix said:

The thing with Vicodin is the addiction thing. Bactrim is a good strong antibiotic. make sure you follow that one to the letter. the reason we have Drug restiant bacteria is people stopping the medication before they are supposed to.

sounds like you are on your way to a good recovery.

I just went to the doctor earlier today for knee pains. They said I need an X-Ray so I'm going to some other clinic tomorrow.

Now that it has been almost six days since the surgery, I seem to be back to my normal self, albiet I have a "wooden" right leg. My mom and dad picked me up Friday evening in Toledo and took me back to Cleveland for some rest and relaxation and so far it has done wonders.

After my dad got to take a look at the wound, which is pretty shocking, he said I am a super trooper since I can handle all the pain of an open cut like that. And since it's been about a week since the infection was removed, he hopes, and I hope, the doctor on Monday will decide to close up the knee and let it heal that way, and no more open wound recovery.

I get to see the doctors on Monday and I need to find out what exactly happened, how I got this infection, why surgery was the option, and where I go from here. Although I like the idea of a wound vaccum, closing the knee right now is better -- that is, if I show no signs of infection in my knee.

I've been getting stronger, eating well, going to the bathroom when I need to, and I even took a modified shower for the first time in nearly a week. I'm going to do it today as well. The only area not getting clean is the bandaged knee area.

Oh, and for those of you concerned that I'm now hooked on Vicodin, sorry to say I am not. Since Friday evening, I have taken TWO Vicodin, and so far weening me off it has been successful. The only time I am taking the narcotic is shortly before I change my wound dressing.

Hope to learn more Monday.