Methicillin-Resistant Staphylococcus Aureus (MRSA) is a type of bacteria located in the nose and/or on the skin. This comprehensive guide tells the medical practitioners what they need to know about MRSA. Part of the "In Practice" series, it is aimed at junior hospital doctors and general practitioners.

Aimed at junior hospital doctors and general practitioners, the In Practice Series has been devised by RSM Press to present cutting-edge and clear-cut opinion leader advice and summary acts related to every day clinical practice.

MRSA is an all too familiar acronym in use in most UK hospitals. MRSA was discovered in the 1960s however has not been a public cause for concern until the current pandemic started in the 1990s. It shows no signs of abating and the UK now has about the highest prevalence in Europe. It has captured the attention of the public and politicians but how important is it in clinical practice? How did it evolve, will it go away or get worse - will it really develop into the untreatable superbug? Is it more virulent than Staphylococcus aureus, what are its common clinical presentation and the best treatments? What are the best ways to control it if indeed we should bother? How much does it cost the NHS? Do we have any new strategies up our sleeves? These are just some of the intriguing questions that a distinguished panel of authors from around the world have tried to answer in this monograph.

Some of the topics covered include:
Historical perspectives - Ian Phillips (London)
Immunology and pathogenesis of MRSA - Von Belkum (Rotterdam)
Antibiotic resistance in MRSA - Giles Edwards (Glasgow)
Evolution of MRSA - Mark Enright (London University)
Epidemiology of MRSA - Vuopia-Varkila (Finland)
Control of MRSA - Barry Cookson (London) Georgia Duckworth (London) & Hans Kolmos (Denmark)
Treatment of MRSA - Ian Gould (Aberdeen)
Decolonisation of MRSA patient - A Seaton (Glasgow)
Laboratory aspects- developments in detection and AST - Donald Morrison (Glasgow)
Alternative treatments - Tom Riley (Perth, Australia)
MRSA in the home and on the farm - Vos + Vos (Nijmegen/Rotterdam)
Mopping up MRSA - Stephanie Dancer (Glasgow)
Guidance to control MRSA from the Royal College of Physicians of Edinburgh - D Baird (Glasgow)

With its easily accessible approach, broken down into easy-to read chapters, the tips and useful advice of this text makes this a key text for all hospital practitioners. MRSA In Practice is a book that no health care professional can afford to be without.