5 things you need to know about staph infections

Student athletes at Mt. Lebanon School District have been diagnosed with Staphylococcus aureus, commonly known simply as staph.

Here are the five things you need to know about staph infections:

STORY: Football players treated for staph infection

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1.What is Staph?

• It's a type of bacteria that most people carry.  It usually doesn't cause any problems, but sometimes that bacteria can cause an infection.

2. How is staph infection spread?

• Staph infections can be transferred from person to person.
• The bacteria can live on inanimate objects and can transfer easily to the next person who touches them.

3. What are the common symptoms of staph?

• Skin infections – Boils, impetigo, cellulitis
• Blood infections – fever and low blood pressure.  The infection can spread to organs, bones, muscles.

4. What are the risk factors?

• Playing certain types of contact sports
• Weakened immune system and other underlying medical conditions.
• Current or recent hospital stays.

5. How is it treated?

• Antibiotics
• Wound drainage

Sometimes staph infections can become resistant to antibiotics.  That type of infection is known as methicillin-resistant Staphylococcus aureus or MRSA.

(Source: CDC.gov and MayoClinic.org)

Cox Media Group