EVERYBODY PANIC

[giza]

Drug-resistant staph found to be passed in gay sex
By Amanda Beck

SAN FRANCISCO (Reuters) - A drug-resistant strain of potentially deadly bacteria has moved beyond the borders of U.S. hospitals and is being transmitted among gay men during sex, researchers said on Monday.

They said methicillin-resistant Staphylococcus aureus, or MRSA, is beginning to appear outside hospitals in San Francisco, Boston, New York and Los Angeles.

Sexually active gay men in San Francisco are 13 times more likely to be infected than their heterosexual neighbors, the researchers reported in the Annals of Internal Medicine.

"Once this reaches the general population, it will be truly unstoppable," said Binh Diep, a researcher at the University of California, San Francisco who led the study. "That's why we're trying to spread the message of prevention."

According to chemical analyses, bacteria are spreading among the gay communities of San Francisco and Boston, the researchers said.

"We think that it's spread through sexual activity," Diep said.

This superbug can cause life-threatening and disfiguring infections and can often only be treated with expensive, intravenous antibiotics.

It killed about 19,000 Americans in 2005, most of them in hospitals, according to a report published in October in the Journal of the American Medical Association.

The rest of the article is over here. It really is not good news.

Comments

[simbab.livejournal.com]

Yes, but the article I read had a quote from a director of infectious diseases saying just to shower after sexual contact. You didn't even need antibacterial soap.

The San Francisco Chronicle also had a graph showing the percentage of infections against the percentage of male-male couples in some major urban areas. My first thought was: um, what about monogamous couples...?

[branwyn.livejournal.com]

Hmm. Interesting and important, if not good, news. Reposting to my journal.

Thanks,

B.

[antimon.livejournal.com]

no cus the bisexuals cross it over to the hetero's

[antimon.livejournal.com]

why are so many of the really bad desises hitting the sexually active gay men first so often. What do they have a target on their backs or something?

Start conspiracy theory

It almost seems intentional

[branwyn.livejournal.com]

Well, a) anal sex provides easy passage for pathogens to the bloodstream due to the thin, fragile nature of the skin inside your ass and b) gay men are more promiscuous than heterosexuals or lesbians, meaning that any diseases in the community are encountered more often and thus chance of contracting a disease is increased.

It's all probability and statistics, really - no conspiracy theories needed.

B.

[drzarron.livejournal.com]

PANIC PANIC.. There are people out there having gay sex PANIC!!

Infection? What infection??

[skiprudder.livejournal.com]

Honestly, part of me can't help feeling like this might be good news. HIV rates have been rising again among gay men after years of falling rates, maybe something more "immediate" will get more guys to suit up again.

[girtygrin.livejournal.com]

I know I just got out of the hospital after having staph but I swear thtas NOT where I got it.

[plaguefox.livejournal.com]

Damn, this totally ruins all of my plans for Further Confusion. :( :( :(

[akakaryuu.livejournal.com]

omfg plaguefox, i haven't heard from you in years xD

But on a serious note, I think I might just turn straight xD Too much hassle being gay now a days :|

[nidonocu.livejournal.com]

There is actually a big thing over here about it and the problem is not sex, its being unclean. Unclean hospitals in particular!
Do check out the wikipedia article on it and get a few more facts.
Both the bottom of that article that you didn't post mention simply staying clean is a good idea and the advice 'shower more often' is not something I think anyone should not follow. :P

[wildw0lf.livejournal.com]

Although if one practiced safe sex, this shouldn't be an issue?