Preventing Skin Infection
Health - How to prevent skin infection

Preventing Skin Infection

Staphylococcus aureus is a common bacteria carried on the skin and in the nose. It's a common cause of skin infection. While most staph infections are minor, some, such as methicillin-resistant staphylococcus aureus (MRSA), can become serious because they're resistant to antibiotics usually used to treat them.  It's being seen in sports settings because MRSA is transmitted by sharing items such as towels, uniforms or other clothing along with razors or various pieces of equipment that had contact with an infected wound.

Symptoms vary, depending on the part of the body infected, and can include redness, swelling and tenderness, according to the New York State Department of Health. The federal Centers for Disease Control and Prevention offer these tips for athletes on how to prevent MRSA or similar staph skin infections:

• Cover all wounds. If a wound cannot be covered adequately, consider excluding players with potentially infectious skin lesions from practice or competitions until the lesions are healed or can be covered adequately.

• Encourage good hygiene, including showering and washing with soap after all practices and competitions.

• Ensure adequate availability of soap and hot water.

• Discourage sharing of towels and personal items (for example, clothing or equipment). Establish routine cleaning schedules for shared equipment.

• Train athletes and coaches in first aid for wounds and recognition of wounds that are potentially infected.

• Encourage athletes to report skin lesions to coaches and encourage coaches to assess athletes regularly for skin lesions.

• If improvement is not seen, the doctor should get a wound culture if it wasn't done initially. A culture will indicate which antibiotic will be effective against the infection.

For more information go to www.cdc.gov