Wednesday, October 24, 2012

Happiness-Eating Bacteria


Friday morning I woke up with a dime-sized red mark on my lower arm. It appeared to be zit without a head. It wouldn't pop, so I eagerly awaited taking care of it after a hot shower.

A few hours later the zit looked like a large spider bite. When I squeezed it, a jolt of hot pain spread up my arm.

I watched this spider bite grow for a couple of hours. Once my arm started feeling hot, I went to the Emergency Room.

Anyone who has grappled or worked in medicine know why I went to the ER rather than waiting to see my doctor the following Monday. An aggressive form of Methicillin-resistant Staphylococcus aureus – or flesh-eating bacteria – had begun colonizing my arm. 

By Monday I would have run the risk of losing part of my arm. (Some aggressive antibiotics killed those encroaching bastards.)

You might be wondering what a story about a bacteria infection have to do with anything.


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