MRSA Notes

“Three confirmed cases this week of a bacterial staph infection in the Stokes County Schools have officials taking steps to sanitize high-traffic areas and educate parents about prevention by sending out memos and leaving phone messages.

The illness is similar to impetigo - a skin infection that usually affects children. But after health-care providers investigated the cases, the Stokes County Health Department determined that the infection stems from MRSA, an acronym for methicillin-resistant staphylococcus aureus.

"What makes it different from impetigo is that it is methicillin resistant, which impetigo cannot be," said Denise Martin, a communicable-disease nurse at the health department. "Methicillin is a family of antibiotics. MRSA is caused by a type of bacteria normally carried on the skin and in the nose of healthy people. It is spread by skin-to-skin contact."”

Winston-Salem Journal | Stokes schools confirm 3 staph cases