Some facelift patients infected with MRSA

New York - A study shows that about one half of 1 percent of people undergoing facelifts became infected with methicillin-resistant Staphylococcus aureus (MRSA), HealthDay News reports.

Researchers at New York’s Lennox Hill-Manhattan Eye, Ear and Throat Hospital looked at the medical records of 780 patients who had facelift procedures between 2001 and 2007. They found that five patients developed infections at the surgical site, and four (0.5 percent) tested positive for MRSA.

Two of the MRSA-positive patients were admitted to a hospital for antibiotic therapy, the researchers write, and both may have been exposed to MRSA before their facelifts.

“With the rise of MRSA colonization and infections, facial plastic surgeons performing rhytidectomy and other soft-tissue procedures may want to consider introducing screening protocols to identify patients who are at increased risk for infection,” the study’s authors write. “During preoperative evaluation, a full medical history should include information on possible prior contacts with persons at high risk for carrying MRSA.”