Shiloh
Editor, Senior Moderator
Source: http://www.desmoinesregister.com/article/20090916/SPORTS08/909170348/-1/NEWS04
High School Football: Benton players hit with skin infection
By JOHN NAUGHTON ? jnaughton@dmreg.com ? September 16, 2009
Three sophomore football players at Benton Community of Van Horne have been treated for a contagious skin infection.
The athletes were infected with MRSA. None required hospitalization, Benton superintendent Gary Zittergruen said.
School officials reported two cases of the staph infection on Friday and posted a letter on the school district's Web site.
"It's a scary medical condition," Zittergruen said. "It looks like a spider bite."
The players were treated by local doctors. School officials are contacting parents in the district to make sure families are informed.
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The team did not miss any games or practices because of the outbreak.
MRSA is spread through skin-to-skin contact and shared personal items such as water bottles.
In 2007, football teams at Cedar Falls Northern University and Des Moines Roosevelt both reported staph infections.
Athletes should keep sores and abrasions covered, wash their hands frequently and keep equipment clean, said Alan Beste, wellness director of the Iowa High School Athletic Association.
"It is really something that people need to think about each season," Beste said.
To learn more about preventing MRSA, http://www.cdc.gov/ncidod/dhqp/ar_MRSA_AthletesFAQ.htm
High School Football: Benton players hit with skin infection
By JOHN NAUGHTON ? jnaughton@dmreg.com ? September 16, 2009
Three sophomore football players at Benton Community of Van Horne have been treated for a contagious skin infection.
The athletes were infected with MRSA. None required hospitalization, Benton superintendent Gary Zittergruen said.
School officials reported two cases of the staph infection on Friday and posted a letter on the school district's Web site.
"It's a scary medical condition," Zittergruen said. "It looks like a spider bite."
The players were treated by local doctors. School officials are contacting parents in the district to make sure families are informed.
Advertisement
The team did not miss any games or practices because of the outbreak.
MRSA is spread through skin-to-skin contact and shared personal items such as water bottles.
In 2007, football teams at Cedar Falls Northern University and Des Moines Roosevelt both reported staph infections.
Athletes should keep sores and abrasions covered, wash their hands frequently and keep equipment clean, said Alan Beste, wellness director of the Iowa High School Athletic Association.
"It is really something that people need to think about each season," Beste said.
To learn more about preventing MRSA, http://www.cdc.gov/ncidod/dhqp/ar_MRSA_AthletesFAQ.htm