re: OT Docs - Question RE Recurring Nasal Staph Infections

Cocain

I had the same thing, my wife works at the hospital. It was continuose. I got treatment, it was gone for 2-3 months, and got it back. This round it only gets sore every few months. It sucks but I still feel lucky compared to where it was. Find a good doc and good luck to you. I got on steroid, nose antibiotic, antibiotic pill bc it probably colonizes, and we had our house wiped down good two weeks in a row by the house cleaner.

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I am going to start w another ENT.

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Honestly I wouldn't see another ENT about this. I'm sure ENT's know quite a bit about staph in the nose but what you need here is someone specialized in the treatment of staph, such as an Infectious Disease doctor or, like the route I took, an Immunologist. Something about your body is causing a weakness in your immune system, which is allowing for the recurring infections. Find out what that weakness is and treat THAT. You kill a snake by cutting its head off.

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Ask your dr about adding rifampin to your other abx. Also use dial gold bar soap.

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FTR, a combination of Rifampin and Bactrim whiped it out from my system for a good 5 months. I thought it had taken care of it for good until it came back. That's when I decided to find the most Indian immunologist I could find.

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Since you’ve had this reoccurring infection for over a year and your doctor has prescribed you Bactrim, it’s very likely you have MRSA. If bactrim isn’t working, then you have a highly resistant strain of MRSA.

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Or it isn't staph at all.

When treatment fails, you've got one of three things:
1) wrong bug (could be different bacteria known to colonize the nasal cavities)
2) wrong drug (may be ineffective for that areas resistance/susceptibility patterns)
3) wrong diagnosis (may not even be bacterial infection. Could be ulcerating skin cancer (probably not, this is just exercise in thought), odd place for an HSV ulcer (cold sore) or even a few other things)

Explain to internist how distressing it is. Ask if he's sure it is staph at all. Go back to your ENT, explain its recurrence, see how he/she wants to proceed.


The simple answer is usually correct, but when it's not simple, go back to where you started and have the folks who have been looking at it rethink it.

Try putting some strong antibiotic cream up both nostrils with a Q-tip.

My wife gets this. It is on her scalp now. I think I have it.

Highly recommend you see an Infectious Disease specialist.

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Do you pull your nose hairs? Seriously, this causes staph infections

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I forgot to mention this -- I used to always pull my nose hairs and once I started to realize that could be the cause of these infections, I stopped. I trim them now with long narrow scissors. I snip, pour rubbing alcohol on the blades, then snip again, and so forth. After I trim, I put mupirocin into each nostril with a q-tip (never same swap in both nostrils). I'm paranoid about getting the infection again.

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Cocaine is a hell of a drug...

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I've always had sinus issues but didnt want the surgery so I had a procedure where they stick a heating coil in your nasal passages and burn away the scar tissue.

Just local anesthesia, put two cotton strips in with something on there for about 5 minutes, takes those out then hands me a spray bottle and says take two deep pulls on each nostril. Did as instructed and immediately looked at Doc and he said "yeah see that reaction a lot, its a cocaine based anesthetic". So had the procedure with a nice little drip going.