I went back on antibiotics a week ago and the pharmacist failed to put the "sun exposure warning" on my bottle. On Sunday, I was sitting outside in the shade and wearing a 3/4 length sleeve shirt. By Sunday night, my forearms began to breakout and blister. Then, it started stinging and burning. It continued to spread later that night and into the morning.
Believing that I was having a reaction to the antibiotic, I went back to the doctor. After she took a look, she said it was a skin infection that was caused by the exposure to the sun while on Levaquin. She gave me steroids to dry up the blisters and inflammation. She warned me to not to work in the yard and not to break the blisters because it could put me at risk of getting the flesh-eating bacteria that seems to be cropping up in the area.
Here's the background:
Four weeks ago a Georgia woman contracted a flesh-eating bacteria after gashing her leg while zip-lining. Aimee Copeland has lost her left leg, both feet, both hands and part of her abdomen since the May 1 accident. Just a week later, a Greenville, SC woman also fell victim to the same bacteria while in a Georgia hospital having her twins. Within 15 mins of noticing a painful stop on her leg, she went to the hospital. Both these women have been on life support, endured multiple surgeries and their future uncertain even though both seem to making great strides in recovering.
Now, there are four confirmed cases in Georgia of this infection known as necrotizing fasciitis, one suspected case in Pennsylvania and now a 78 year old grandmother in Greenville, SC. Doctors say this bacterium is a common strain “that you and I come in contact with every day and don’t get ill from.” The county health official says they see about 50 cases a year in the area.
The newest confirmed case in the Greenville, SC area had area cut out of her leg the size of a "regular football,” she told the local Fox channel. She was in a coma for five days and just recently was able to walk. It is not clear as to what caused her to contract this deadly bacteria but the medical community is saying that it invades the body through cuts, scrapes and other broken skin.
Latest Update: http://www.nydailynews.com/life-style/health/south-carolina-grandmother-latest-victim-flesh-eating-bacteria-article-1.1089473
Latest Georgia Case: http://newsfeed.time.com/2012/05/25/third-flesh-eating-bacteria-case-confirmed-in-georgia-possible-fourth/#ixzz1wNakOoV6
Georgia story - http://www.google.com/hostednews/ap/article/ALeqM5i4NkRi0VThQREJfMjfi7uZ2FgIQg?docId=0f4190ed21db4d3fadcc3e40795ba942
South Carolina story - http://www.reuters.com/article/2012/05/17/us-usa-southcarolina-infection-idUSBRE84G1BG20120517
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