11/28/2013    

PODIATRISTS IN THE NEWS

OH Podiatrist Saves Foot of Woman with MRSA Infection

 

Lyndsey Montanaro's long nightmare began after she had received several corticosteroids in her heel by a physician, yet still had increasing pain. She was referred to Dr. Michael Canales, a foot-and-ankle surgeon at St. Vincent Charity Medical Center's Spine and Orthopedic Institute. Tests showed Montanaro had developed a severe methicillin-resistant Staphylococcus aureus, or MRSA, infection. Canales hypothesizes that the virulent bacillus, infamously resistant to most traditional antibiotics, was introduced deep into the heel by one of the injections at the urgent-care center. Although infection after a properly administered injection is exceedingly rare, Montanaro's case is a reminder that an injection is an invasive

 

Lyndsey Montanaro and Dr. Michael Canales (Photo: Jerry Mann)

 

procedure accompanied by risks. Canales admitted Montanaro to the hospital, where he spent the next 2 1/2 weeks working to save her foot. He ordered intravenous vancomycin, an antibiotic "so toxic that it can induce kidney failure in some patients." He took her into surgery the next day to remove dead skin, fat, muscle and bone, and he repeated the procedure every other day for a week. The doctor also arranged for hyperbaric oxygen therapy to help speed wound healing.

 

Source: Lynne Thompson, Cleveland Magazine [December 2013]