Officials with the Leon County Health Department are actively investigating the unusually high number of staph infections. A Health Department representative told the Tallahassee Democrat that investigators are looking into the possibility that the Pain Institute may have received a contaminated batch of medicine, but the source of the staph bacteria has yet to be determined. There is no evidence that the clinic is to blame for the outbreak.

Patients began calling the Pain Institute of North Florida on March 14 with what seemed like viral symptoms. Cultures revealed that they had contracted staph infections, probably on or around March 12. The infections were not the drug resistant variety of staph known as methicillin-resistant Staphylococcus aureus, or MRSA, and can be treated with antibiotics.

The owner of the Pain Institute, Dr. George Arcos, informed County health officials of the apparent staph outbreak, and asked them to investigate. Patients of the Pain Institute of North Florida who visited the clinic between March 10 and March 21, 2008 have been notified, and Dr. Arcos has suspended pain procedures at the clinic while the investigation is being conducted. Patients who underwent treatment during that period who have not received a phone call should contact the Leon County Health Department at 850-606-8161.

The Western Washington University junior was brought to the school clinic by his roommate on February 14, 2008. He was later admitted to St. Joseph Hospital, but the aggressive MRSA infection had spread to his respiratory system and did not respond to massive doses of antibiotics, the Associated Press reported. Feden died on February 20.

Whatcom County health officials believe that this is an isolated case of MRSA, and not part of a larger staph infection outbreak. Western Washington University has posted a MRSA information bulletin to educate the community about CA-MRSA, the community-acquired form of the infection.

The contaminated cheeses were made from raw milk, and were sold in several retail health food stores in Indiana, as well as directly from the Grassy Meadows dairy. The recalled cheeses were sold in blocks or wedges, and include the following:

• Colby (lots 210317 and 19177)

• Jalapeno natural cheese (lots 2617, 21017 and 11017)

• “Homemade” cheese (lots 19267 and 19227)

• Monterey Jack (lots 18207 and 2937)

• Garlic pepper cheese (lot 19147)

No illnesses related to the contaminated cheese have been reported.

Products should be returned to the place of purchase.

Erie County Coroner Lyell Cook told the Erie Times-News that hospital administrators believed Cheri Lyons succumbed to cancer, and may have had MRSA as well. That information was not confirmed by the Millcreek Community Hospital.

Lyons was employed with the Erie County Office of Children and Youth as a caseworker, the Erie Times-News reported. She had worked there for about a month.

County officials learned of Lyons’ MRSA diagnosis on Monday, and took steps to disinfect her work areas, track down the people she came into contact with, and educate her clients and coworkers about the contagious disease.

Light therapy may be the answer.

Current research in the area of photomedicine is poised to have a huge impact on how doctors respond to serious drug-resistant staph infections like methicillin-resistant Staphylococcus aureus, or MRSA. While antibiotics don’t always have the desired results, light therapy for MRSA-infected wounds is showing great promise, according to researchers at the Wellman Center for Photomedicine at Massachusetts General Hospital.

Therapeutic light is not new in the treatment of human ailments. Light therapy devices are successful at providing joint and muscle pain relief, and photodynamic therapies for cancer and dermatological conditions are currently under evaluation.

The light therapy wound treatments being studied at the Wellman Center could help reduce the high mortality rate of MRSA by providing faster cures without side effects. Estimates by the Centers for Disease Control indicate that MRSA kills more people than AIDS in the United States each year.

In animal tests performed by Wellman Center researchers, a deeply penetrating light focused on a wound colonized with MRSA was able to kill the bacteria in just 15 minutes. Treatment with antibiotic medicines takes days to weeks.

Light therapy for MRSA is also good news for patients concerned about the many side effects associated with traditional antibiotics. When focused on an infected wound, the light initiates chemical processes that are harmful to the bacteria, not the patient.

Wellman Center researchers will study the use of light therapy to treat MRSA infections in human populations next.

Consideration of new reporting requirements began earlier this fall following an outbreak of over twenty MRSA infections in Montgomery County students. While none of those cases were fatal, a Maryland special education teacher died from MRSA-related complications earlier this month.

The Commission is currently seeking to develop a system for collecting and distributing data on healthcare-associated MRSA infections, not the community-acquired strain that has been at the center of media attention in recent weeks. However, the Commission is recommending a statewide public information campaign to underscore the importance of handwashing in preventing the spread of MRSA.