3+ Staphylococcus aureus Isolate is MRSA

@westd Ugh! Your girlfriend is correct to an extent - MRSA is "everywhere" - but there is a higher risk of contracting it in a household where one or more people have been infected with it - so if you spend much time there she probably should have let you know when the wound started to look infected.

Let's talk about the elbow pain - is it getting better now that the hand infection is tamed? Often after an acute infection, out whole body can ache as it sends out the white cells to "conquer" the enemy, and that soon settles down. If it does not ease after 5-7 days, you need to go back and have them check to be sure the infection has not found a new home.

Now, if you are normally a healthy person, once you get rid of the acute infection, you just need to remain vigilant in the future, and treat any laceration, ingrown toenail or toothache promptly. And if you are seeking any surgery or other treatment that will include exposure to blood, you need to let the provider know you have had it, so they can take extra precautions (they actually use separate trauma and operating rooms to avoid contaminating other parts of the facility.)

I'm sorry you are going through this - all of the antibiotics that people used to be prescribed "just in case" when they had a cold, sore throat or earache have created these "superbugs" like MRSA. Do you think you need to go back and have your elbows checked out?