Special Communication: Methicillin Resistant Staphylococcus Aureus
by Raphael d’Angelo, MD
Methicillin resistant Staphylococcus aureus (MRSA) is a serious and growing concern for the medical community and the public. A recent survey reported 94,000 new cases per year and 18,000 deaths – more than HIV and AIDS. MRSA infections, once confined to hospitalized mostly immunocompromised patients, it is now out in the community and is being reported with increasing frequency in generally healthy individuals. The organism may be found on skin surfaces and is often recovered from the nose of asymptomatic carriers of this organism. Transmission between pets and their owners has also been reported.
Infections of the skin may appear trivial at first but often result in deeper infection of the skin with abscess formation and even cellulitis. Rarely a necrotizing skin infection or even bacteremia and sepsis may occur with increased morbidity and mortality.
The challenge is swift and accurate diagnosis, but herein lays the problem. Culture results often take 24-72 hours to return the diagnosis of MRSA and the empiric conventional antibiotics for skin infections will usually not be effective. During this waiting time the infection may become aggressive, so another approach should be considered.
In my outpatient practice of general family medicine I see primary and secondary skin infections and I assume that the offending organism is Staphylococcus aureus until proven otherwise. My training in medical technology and microbiology has given me the advantage of being able to research the killing effect of natural agents on various pathogenic bacteria including Staphylococcus aureus. In my research, specific essential oils have been found on culture and sensitivity disc testing to completely inhibit this organism. Such findings from other researchers have been previously reported in the literature. Nelson found that the essential oils of peppermint, thyme, lavender, tea tree and juniper were effective against MRSA in vitro [Nelson R. In vitro activities of five plant essential oils against Methicillin-resistant Staphylococcus aureus and vancomycin-resistant Enterococcus faecium. J Antimicrobial Chemo. 40(2) 305-306, 1997].
Case Report: Currently I am following a man in his 50s, an auto mechanic who received a small scrape on the scalp from bumping it on a part of a vehicle. It was treated with conventional antibiotics by his internist. When it did not respond a culture showed MRSA. Topical and oral treatments over a two month period did little to arrest the infection which resulted in an abscess that produced a large concave wound destroying tissue and stopping at the periosteum of the skull. At this point I had joined the clinic and he was referred to me for an alternative approach.
When I saw him four months ago he had an angry wound with inflammation and exudates extending down to the skull. Initially, we stopped the antibacterial ointment he was on and I placed him on a spray of essential oils (ImmuGuard1 2 ml placed in 4 oz distilled water) to be used on the wound four times a day. I also placed him on a new patented essential oil antimicrobial formulation in tablet form (Aromatab2) for a one week course. After two weeks, the exudates had disappeared and I made up a cream consisting of 1 oz of jojoba base cream into which 4 ml of a blend of anti-staph essential oils was mixed in, consisting of Tea Tree, Fragonia, Lavender, Thyme thymol (for antimicrobial action); Helichrysum italicum (for action on fibroblast cells and reduction of scar tissue) and German Chamomile (to reduce inflammation). The total blend was 12% essential oils in the 1 ounce cream base, with the antimicrobial oils comprising the majority of the blend. He used this on the wound after his morning shower, covering it with gauze, and on return from work in the evening, he left it uncovered and used the ImmuGuard spray on the wound. Prior to sleep he would cover the wound with cream and gauze.
I have followed him monthly over the past four months. His wound is granulating in from the base upward. After one month I could no longer see the skull and the most recent visit shows continued filling in of tissue. It is unclear at present if he will require a skin graft to cover the wound cavity in the future, but the tissue is no longer inflamed and there is no exudate. I have learned that he probably acquired this organism from his girlfriend who had an MRSA infection diagnosed a couple of months prior to his scraped scalp.
Case Report: Another case is that of two precious family members. My daughter gave birth to her fourth child and developed a post partum infection with MRSA in the hospital. She was on IV antibiotics and was discharged on oral antibiotics with little improvement. Then a short time after getting home the baby was found to have a MRSA infection of his scalp. Topical treatment was not healing it but was preventing it from spreading.
My daughter consulted me and I recommended topical tea tree oil (Melaleuca alternifolia) for both of them. For my daughter I had her use a few drops undiluted on her skin infection 2-3 times a day and for the baby, she put a few drops into a half teaspoon of coconut oil and worked it into the infant’s wet scalp for a few minutes followed by a rinse and pat dry daily. Over the course of a couple of weeks both infections resolved.
An essential oil is a synergistic mixture of plant manufactured chemical molecules that in some species have known antimicrobial effects that can be applied by knowledgeable aromatherapists for the primary or adjunctive treatment of a host of microbial conditions including MRSA. There can be localized allergic reactions to the administration of any substance on the skin, including essential oil based products, but fortunately these are quite rare.
The alternative is not pretty. High powered or prolonged prescription antibiotics may not work but will definitely place one at risk of further infections with resistant organisms. And the destruction of healthy bacteria on the body’s mucous membrane surfaces can lead to overgrowth of yeast and its attendant toxicities as well as possible immune dysfunction and autoimmune disease. Furthermore, the staph infection may become very aggressive and result in the need for drastic surgical lifesaving measures such as amputation of an affected limb. Death from aggressive MRSA has occurred in as little as 4 days.
Conventional practitioners, my advice is to enlist the help of a clinical aromatherapist to work with you on your patient’s behalf in these cases. Clinical aromatherapists, I stress to you the importance of educating yourselves on the healing power of antimicrobial essential oils and their use for MRSA infections of the skin [see Table 1]. For all of us, assume that every scrape or cut is capable of becoming an MRSA infection. Treat all such wounds with anti-staph essential oils from the onset, without fail!
Table 1: Anti-Staphylococcal Essential Oils
Tea Tree Melaleuca alternifolia
Kunzea ambigua
Manuka Leptospermum scoparium
Peppermint Mentha x piperita
Oregano* Origanum compactum
Clove* Eugenia caryophilus
Cinnamon Bark* Cinnamomum zeylanicum
Eucalyptus radiata
Eucalyptus globulus
Eucalyptus smithi
Spanish oregano* Thymus mastichina
Lemon Citrus limon
Ravintsara (1,8 cineole) Cinnamomum camphora
Thymus vulgaris cv thymol*
Lavender Lavendula augustifolia, Lavendula intermedius
Juniper Berry Juniperus comminus
Lemongrass* Cymbopogon citratus
Geranium Pelargonium graveolens
Moroccan Chamomile Ormenis multicaulis
Cypress Cupressus sempervirens
Palmarosa Compobogon martini
Fragonia Agonis fragrans
*will burn skin undiluted. Use dilute (<10 %) and with caution.
1. ImmuGuard is a proprietary antimicrobial blend of essential oils from Julia Rose Botanicals [www.juliarosebotanicals.com]
2. AromaTab™ Formula 1 is a proprietary blend of antimicrobial essential oils in a patented tablet form with availability limited to clinical personnel. Contact 303-668-4884 for a packet of information.
References
Nelson, R. In vitro activities of five plant essential oils against methicillin resistant staphylococcus aureus and vancomycin resistant enterococcus faecium. J. Antimicrobial chemotherapy 40(2):305-308, 1997
Sherry E, Boeck H, Warnke P, Topical application of a new formulation of eucalyptus oil clears methicillin-resistant Staphylococcus aureus infection. American Journal of Infection Control 29:346, 2001
“MRSA Now Jumps Between Pets and People” Family Practice News 2-15-06
USA TODAY – Oct 19, 2007 – MRSA, page 1
Journal of Antimicrobial Chemotherapy, 35 (3):421-424,1995
Buckle, J. Clinical Aromatherapy, Second Edition, pp 162-180
d’Angelo, R. d’Angelo, N., Aromatogram results of 40 essential oils on various pathogenic bacteria, 2001, unpublished research
About the Author
A Long Island native, Dr. Raphael d’Angelo received his medical degree from the University of Oklahoma in 1976. Upon graduation he served a seven year tour of duty as a family physician in the US Air Force medical corps and returned to a private medical practice in rural Oklahoma from 1982-1991. Dr. d’Angelo moved to
Colorado in 1992 where he currently practices holistic family medicine, medical aromatherapy and microcurrent therapy at Clinix Health Center in Centennial, Colorado. Dr. d’Angelo has used essential oils since childhood and has completed formal training with the Australasian College of Health Studies and the Emerson College of Herbology. In 1999 he became a Charter Diplomate of the American Board of Holistic Medicine and teaches medical aromatherapy to board eligible candidates, nurses, chiropractors, naturopaths, massage therapists and many other health professionals and the public. He is the author of aromatherapy chapters for alternative medicine textbooks for doctors as well as the author of Fundamentals of Aromatic Medicine and Bioterrorism:A Holistic Survival Guide. Dr. d’Angelo is a registered medical technologist since 1965 with distinction in microbiology. He is engaged in ongoing research on the antibiotic effects of essential oils on various microorganisms. Dr. d’Angelo has served as Regional Director for the National Association for Holistic Aromatherapy. He is the immediate past president of the Alliance of International Aromatherapists.
Website: www.clinixusa.com
E-mail: dangelo.raphael@gmail.com