Th e HEALTH | MARCH, 2019
10
ISSUE: SUPERBUG
ISSUE: SUPERBUG
Mrs A taking a stroll
M
RSA, or Methicillin-Resistant Staphylococcus Aureus has
been found in hospitals and care centres for decades,
yet recent reports alleges it to now exist in one particular
community.
Researchers in Malaysia was somewhat surprised and alarmed to
receive news regarding a terrible infection case in Kuchai Lama, Kuala
Lumpur late January.
What infection?
Around 20 people have reported in a press conference that they
have contracted a rather bad skin infection after a visit to a particular
massage parlour. They were diagnosed with a bacterial infection it
seems, and it wasn’t just your normal bacterial infection.
It was said to be the work of MRSA, or Methicillin-Resistant
Staphylococcus Aureus. Internationally known as the ‘super bug’ of
bacteria, while some also calls it ‘Mrs. A’.
MRSA is a distinct strain of the staphylococcus bacteria that have
developed immunity towards certain types of antibiotics, including
penicillin, methicillin, oxacillin, and cephalosporin. These are broad
spectrum antibiotics commonly prescribed to combat a slew of
bacterial infections. It is spread by physical contact with an infected
surface or individuals.
If you were infected with MRSA, common antibiotics prescribed by
your doctor at the clinic will not be an effective treatment.
Contained for now
Datuk Dr Noor Hisham Abdullah, director-general of Health of the
Ministry of Health Malaysia has confi rmed the allegation put forth by
few of the victims of the infection, stating that one of the workers in the
massage parlour was found to carry the bacteria MRSA.
In the Ministry’s report, the worker was quickly rushed for treatment
and was cleared of the infection by February 21. The massage parlour
also voluntarily suspended their services from February 2 to February
10 to conduct a thorough cleaning of their facility.
The Lembah Pantai Health Offi ce and the Kuala Lumpur and
Purtrajaya State Health Department was the one to oversee the
investigation of the case, and they have been monitoring potential
outbreak of the infection in the area since. So far, none has been
reported.
We should be vigilant
Although reports have said that the infection has successfully been
contained, it would be wise for us to risk ourselves nevertheless.
The Health reached out to a few authorities to know more about
MRSA, and discuss ways we can be safe from the nasty infection.
Infection alert
MRSA has been said to cause skin infections to patrons of a
massage parlour. Should we be alarmed?
A
SSOCIATE Prof Dr Hui-min Neoh is a
senior research fellow at UKM Medical
Molecular Biology Institute (UMBI).
One of her responsibilities at UMBI
is to study the progression of MRSA,
particularly in Malaysia.
“We were taken aback when we heard of the report
on the internet about the alleged infection of MRSA.
I only heard of the news when one of my family
members shared it,” says Dr Neoh.
Th e reason for her surprise is that MRSA is usu-
ally known to exist in hospitals and long-term care
facilities. Th erefore if the news is true, that means
that the antibiotic resistant bacteria has now spread
into communities. A worrisome indication.
“Th e type of MRSA that is found in hospitals
are categorised as Hospital-Associated MRSA, or
HA-MRSA. However if MRSA infections have been
detected outside of the hospital, it is categorised as
Community-Associated MRSA, or CA-MRSA. Stud-
ies have shown that CA-MRSA spreads easily, grows
faster, and resistant to drying.” she elaborates.
In a nutshell, MRSA is already resistant to the
common antibiotics, while the ones found outside
CAUTION IS
KEY: Dr Neoh
explains how we
can keep safe from
MRSA infection by
being careful and
proactive.
of the hospital remains to be investigated.
Should we be alarmed?
The troubling news about the supposed MRSA
infection coming from a massage parlour is again,
worrisome.
“As of now, there is no conclusive proof that the
infections reported in Kuchai Lama are all MRSA
infections. It seems there is no further investigation
to fi nd the source of the infection. But if the news are
true, then the MRSA are still eff ectively at large. We
don’t know from which massage parlour it suppos-
edly came from, and therefore won’t be able to stop
the possible spread.” Dr Neoh laments.
Should we be alarmed then? Should we start call-
ing for MRSA screening? And what about treatment?
Can we actually cure MRSA infection?
To answer these questions – No, we shouldn’t
panic and cause an alarm over the issue for now.
“Even though the source of the supposed MRSA
infection is yet to be pin-pointed, no news of an
outbreak has been reported since, therefore it could
still be in a controlled state,” says Dr Neoh.
Treatment is available
Although MRSA has a reputation of being tough to
kill with common antibiotics, it can still be treated
with stronger ones.
Dr Tan Toh Leong, Consultant Emergency
Physician and Senior Lecturer at Hospital Canselor
Tuanku Muhriz (HCTM) UKM explains that in
Malaysia, the go-to treatment for MRSA is vancomy-
cin, an antibiotic used to treat a number of bacterial
infections. It is recommended intravenously as a
treatment however, and would therefore be unavail-
able in normal clinics.
“Th e thing with an MRSA infection is, it can pres-
ent diff erently in diff erent individuals. Usually the
infection presents itself as a skin infection, caused
by infected cuts or wounds. However, if MRSA enters
the body and into the lungs for example, it will then
presents itself as pneumonia. If it infects the ears,
then it’s an ear infection, and so on,” explains Dr Tan.
“Th erefore there is no particular set of symptoms
for MRSA. Th e safest way for you is to go see a physi-
cian whenever you have any type of skin irritation,