WASHINGTON – A staph infection that killed a 17-year-old high school student has prompted 22 schools in southern Virginia to close their campuses. Other campuses around the nation have also reported similar types of bacterial infections, although none have lead to any fatalities.
The Oct. 17 closings will allow Bedford County campuses to be disinfected so that the drug-resistant bacterial infection called Methicillin-resistant Staphylococcus aureaus (MRSA) will not spread to other students. Two rural schools in Rappahannock County in northern Virginia were closed for a day last week due to similar concerns. Additionally, the Roanoke Times claims that at least 11 cases of MRSA have been reported in students in southwest Virginia over the last six months.
Since mid-September, in Maryland there have been greater than two dozen infections reported at four high schools. According to MSNBC, infections have also been reported in Waterloo, Ill., several districts in Ohio, Florida and North Carolina.
Generally, staph infections at schools spread in locker rooms when individuals share their towels, razors or athletic gear. Students are urged to always wash their hands and not share towels so that they do not contract or spread this and other diseases.
A fact sheet on MRSA can be found at http://www.vdh.virginia.gov/Epidemiology/factsheets/Methicillin.htm.
