Pocono News Section

MERSA Invades Lycoming County

MERSA Invades Lycoming County - Wednesday, October 17, 2007 at 5:12PM EST

Reported by: Lorena Beniquez
Wednesday, Oct 17, 2007 @05:12pm EST

WILLIAMSPORT, LYCOMING COUNTY - It is a national story hitting home locally. The suberbug known as MRSA or Mersa has already impacted people in Williamsport. One thirty-two year old man recently contracted the bacteria. He asked us not to reveal his identity but he tells us,"I went to the hospital for a simple surgery and three weeks later it started to get infected and I'm upset. I go to the doctor because it was painful and puss started coming out of it."

Contracting Mersa from hospitals has been the norm up until recently. According to medical reports, the bug is now found in prisons, gyms, and locker rooms. WBRE News has learned that Mersa is a problem at the Lycoming County Prison. According to one medical official we spoke to on the phone, the problem is present here in the general population. However, when we made more phone calls to find out how deep the problem goes, none of our phone calls were returned.

Joseph Lyons runs a Williamsport company that trains professionals to detect the bacteria. He says over the past year, he has gotten busier and busier. "Mersa is a very important issue especially in the athletic community because of skin to skin contact. We are getting contacted by different prisons. Contacted by different entities that say, 'Do you have any inspectors?’,” said Lyons.

Lance Mansfield lost his father to Mersa in March and feels compassion for the bacteria’s victims. Mansfield told WBRE News, “If you know somebody who has it, treat them like you would a sick friend. Give them the respect they deserve."