October 2, 2003

By Alex Marvez, South Florida Sun-Sentinel

The staph infections that recently hospitalized two Dolphins and afflicted two others may be related to a strong bacterial strain NFL teams were warned about in the preseason. 

Spokesman Greg Aiello said Tuesday that the league had sent each franchise a report from the Centers for Disease Control and Prevention pertaining to a form of staph infection -- methicillin-resistant staphylococcus aureus (MRSA) -- that was becoming more common in athletic environments.

Linebacker Junior Seau said Monday that he was hospitalized for a staph infection while visiting his home in San Diego during the bye week. Running back/returner Charlie Rogers was hospitalized for two days before the Sept. 21 game against Buffalo after a cut on his arm became infected. He wasn't released until the day of the game.

Running back Travis Minor and linebacker Corey Jenkins also said Monday that they had developed boils but their symptoms weren't as severe as Seau's and Rogers '.

Trainer Kevin O'Neill declined comment for a second consecutive day Tuesday, so it's uncertain whether the players were afflicted with MRSA.

Staph infections usually stem from a skin injury and can cause redness, boils, blisters and swelling. MRSA, which is more commonly found in hospitals and prisons, is resistant to the class of antibiotics normally used to treat staph infections.

In its Aug. 22 report, the CDC wrote that community-associated MRSA "has the potential to spread and cause outbreaks among players of competitive sports." Two contributing factors are player-to-player contract and hygiene issues like the sharing of equipment and towels.

Speaking on condition of anonymity, a member of an NFL team's medical staff said Tuesday that one of his players was hospitalized this year after an MRSA infection.

"Once you get one, you have to pay very close attention," the medical staff member said. "We wouldn't let him practice for a week because we wanted no physical contact whatsoever. Even after the wound had healed up pretty well, we made sure to cover it with sterile dressing and bandages so there was no way he could have contact with another player."

Two San Diego players -- Pro Bowl fullback Lorenzo Neal and wide receiver Dequincy Scott -- have been hospitalized this season with staph infections. While it's unknown whether they had MRSA, two prominent college programs have experienced recent problems.

Six University of Texas players were diagnosed with MRSA in 2002. Seven from Southern California were infected this season, and four were hospitalized. MRSA was such a concern to Trojans officials that the locker room and football equipment was sanitized and careful hygiene was encouraged among players.

Staff writer Michael Cunningham and staff researcher William Lucey contributed to this report. Alex Marvez can be reached at amarvez@sun-sentinel.com.

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