Journal-News.com

By Richard Wilson

Staff Writer

The staph infection MRSA has been confirmed in two students at Mason Heights Elementary School and the Mason Early Childhood Center, and possibly at the middle school, according to school spokeswoman Tracey Carson Tuesday.

Parents were alerted to the discovery on Friday and custodians worked through the weekend and Monday to disinfect buses and playground equipment, Carson said. Other areas where MRSA is likely to spread, such as door handles, railings, padlocks and restrooms, were also cleaned.

Aside from the two confirmed reports, there is one suspected case at the middle school, Carson said. Those students were expected to return to school this week.

There are no reports of students with the infection at the high school, the intermediate buildings or at Western Row Elementary. Warren County health officials visited the schools on Monday and approved the chemicals being used to disinfect areas, Carson said.

According to the Warren County Combined Health District, staph aureus, or staph, is a bacteria found on most everybody's skin and it is also found most everywhere in the environment. Staph is usually not a problem for people on their skin; however, when a bug bite, a scratch, or anything that breaks the skin occurs, these bacteria may enter the body where it can cause an infection. Most of these skins infections are minor, such as a pimple or a boil. They are easily treated by your physician by draining or treatment with topical antibiotics, also known as antimicrobials or antibacterials.

More serious types of staph infections (invasive infection) can occur, such as surgical wound infections, bloodstream infections, and pneumonia. Most staph bacteria are sensitive to simple antibiotics and clear right up. Unfortunately, the overuse of antibiotics has made this simple staph a little more difficult to kill, according to the Health District. In some hospitals and nursing homes where the use of antibiotics is high, there is a higher prevalence of resistant staph. When staph become resistant to methicillin (a simple type of penicillin), they are given the name MRSA. This does not mean those particular staph are any more likely to cause infection, it does mean that they will be much harder to kill.

How can you prevent staph or MRSA skin infections? Practice good hygiene. Keep your hands clean by washing thoroughly with soap and water or using an alcohol-based hand sanitizer. Keep cuts and scrapes clean and covered with a bandage until healed. Avoid contact with other people's wounds or bandages. And avoid sharing personal items such as towels or razors.