Transmission to animals can occur from kissing, licking, bathing or any direct contact with an infected person. Also be careful when you take your pet to visit a high-risk environment, such as a nursing home or human hospital.
Many of us pet owners benefit from the comfort and company of our animal companions. It’s often said that as we get older, our pets start to look like us and have similar features. This may or may not be the case, but it is increasingly clear that pet owners and their animals can contract the same illnesses. Such shared diseases are called zoonoses.
Methicillin-resistant Staphylococcus aureus (MRSA), which the media has hyped as the “flesh eating bacteria/super bug,” has been linked to an increase in skin issues in both pets and their owners over the past ten years. A type of bacteria called MRSA is resistant to conventional antibiotics. Horses, dogs, cats, birds, cows, and other animals have all been reported to have MRSA infection or colonization. However, it’s crucial to remember that humans have a higher risk of contracting MRSA from other humans.
While MRSA may be widespread and unharmful in healthy individuals and their pets, there is a segment of the population that is more vulnerable to these infections: the very young, whose immune systems are still developing; the elderly, whose immune systems are deteriorating; and individuals with open wounds or sores. Patients receiving various treatments, such as chemotherapy or antibiotics, may also experience a decline in immune function.
Due to their high likelihood of being bitten by an animal, human hands are the most frequently exposed body parts to MRSA. Generally speaking, cats are more likely to cause bite infections due to their extremely sharp, pointed teeth that could pierce the joints of the hands. Dogs tend to cause more traumatic destruction of tissue.
MRSA infections are typically spread to pets by people who have brought the bacteria into their homes. If a pet becomes infected, it could easily spread the bacteria to other people, including someone coming home from the hospital or a child with a persistent medical condition.
Hand washing is the most effective way to stop this kind of transmission to and from your pet. It is also important to cover all wounds with bandages. It’s critical to seek medical attention right away if you develop a quarter-sized or larger wound, especially if you also have a fever.
• Deep tissue wounds from cat bites should be immediately cleaned, bandaged, and treated with antibiotic ointment to prevent infection.
• In the case of a dog bite, medical attention may be required to assess the possibility of rabies.
• If a patient has Staph and is bitten by a pet aureus, his or her own bacteria might be positioned deeper and result in an infection. Similar to this, even if a pet is not infected, one’s own bacteria could cause a staph infection if it is introduced into a weak spot as a result of a bite or scratch wound.
• Pets should be swabbed (tested) and treated by their veterinarians as needed in households where people have repeated MRSA infections. Pets may naturally shed the bacteria, but they can be treated with a straightforward nasal antibacterial cream.
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Q and A:
On isolates from the man and the dog, pulsed-field gel electrophoresis was carried out. The isolates were indistinguishable and inconsistent with known epidemic clones in the United States. Additionally, spa typing was done, and all isolates were spa type 3, or t037 in accordance with the Ridom classification. Real-time PCR failed to find any genes that produce the Panton-Valentine leukocidin (1).
Most of the world is seeing an increase in the prevalence of MRSA in humans. Similar to humans, MRSA colonization and infections in animals have increased recently (1–5). Although the method of transmission, risk factors for transmission, and frequency of interspecies transmission are not well understood, MRSA can spread from people to their pets (1-4,6). We describe a case of MRSA transmission from a human to a dog that resulted in the dog’s euthanasia.
Pets frequently have MRSA strains from the local human population, according to studies on MRSA infection and colonization in household animals (3,7). Along with others, we think that MRSA in pets is closely related to MRAS in humans and that MRSA in domestic animals is frequently brought on by infected or colonized humans (5). After the reservoir (either humans or animals in the home) was found and treated appropriately in some MRSA cases, the infection reportedly went away (4-6). Medical professionals and veterinarians need to be aware of MRSA and the risk of cross-species infection as MRSA infections have reached epidemic levels. Further research is required to better understand the epidemiology of MRSA interspecies transmission in order to aid in the development of infection control and treatment strategies to lower the risk for infection within a household.
Given the level of antimicrobial drug resistance in the MRSA isolates and the patient’s frequent contact with the healthcare system, we believe that the human healthcare system was the source of the MRSA infection. The owner’s open wound from complications of her orthopedic surgery suggests that the dog most likely contracted MRSA through close contact with her. Skin and soft tissue infections, surgical site infections, and colonization have been linked to the majority of MRSA cases in dogs (1,7,8). The timing of both infections and the dog’s negative bacterial cultures in early February both support human-to-dog transmission.
Physical examination in late February revealed purulent discharge from ulcerations and a sizable, firm area of extensive swelling on the dog’s ventral aspect of the neck () She was slightly limp on her right leg and had dried discharge around her stifle. MRSA, which is resistant to tetracycline, enrofloxacin, marbofloxacin, and orbifloxacin, was found in cultures of blood, tissue samples from her neck, and fluid draining from the right stifle joint. A biopsy of the neck revealed moderate to severe superficial to deep perivascular to periadnexal suppurative lymphohistiocytic dermatitis and severe acute multifocal neutrophilic vasculitis with numerous fibrin thrombi. The dog developed systemic inflammatory response syndrome, became more and more lethargic, and had a severely necrotic and ulcerated neck. Clindamycin and cefazolin were administered before culture results were known, and aggressive therapy with these medications led to little clinical improvement. Large areas of skin shed, the face and neck swelled, and focal masses formed inside the lips. When septic shock symptoms appeared 48 hours after this admission for skin lesions, the dog was humanely put to sleep.
Should I test the pets if a human household member is infected with MRSA?
- If a test was positive, it would probably show that the animal had temporarily colonized the area, and no treatment would be required. 1,2,9.
- Even if one test came back negative, colonization could still be possible.
FAQ
What do you do if your dog has MRSA?
Local wound care is crucial for canines with MRSA infections and may include draining abscesses, cleaning and bandaging wounds, and adhering to your veterinarian’s instructions.
Is MRSA fatal in dogs?
Dogs who contract MRSA, a so-called “superbug,” which is resistant to many types of antibiotics, could die as a result.
How long does MRSA take to heal in dogs?
Animals that tested positive for MRSA do not need to be treated because the colonization is temporary and will probably go away in three weeks.
How did my dog get a bacterial skin infection?
Numerous bacterial species typically live on dogs’ skin without showing any symptoms. When conditions allow for the proliferation of bacteria, infection results. This could be a wound, an allergy, a flea infestation, a disease that weakens the immune system, or an underlying condition.