The Nexus

During the second week of October, a Westview football player tested positive for contracting a type of Staph infection called methicillin-resistant staphylocuccus aureus (MRSA). The football players and coaching staff took precautions to prevent the infection from spreading by alerting parents and sterilizing equipment, since the infection can be highly contagious.

“The athlete did not spread it to anyone else, and he was able to get treated in time before it got serious,” Athletic Director Chris Carter said.

This is the second occurrence of MRSA within the football team this year; the first incident occurred during the preseason and was also prevented from spreading. The cases were not related.

Carter said it is unclear how the athlete in the recent incident contracted MRSA.

“It could have been a number of things,” Carter said. “You can get it from touching someone’s MRSA-infected skin, touching any surface that has MRSA, sharing personal hygiene items, or by not having enough resources to keep clean.”

MRSA causes skin infections and can be life threatening if it gets into the bloodstream, lungs or organs. According to an information sheet made by the Health Department in Tacoma, MRSA can look like a boil, an infected skin or wound, a “spider bite”, or an abscess. It is often found at sites of visible skin trauma and areas of body covered by hair. Symptoms include blisters, pustules, or boils that are red, painful, and swollen.

When the athlete displayed symptoms of slight fever, and redness and puss on the wounded area where the area affected wasn’t healing, his parents took him to a hospital.

“He received smooth treatment, and did not stay in the hospital long,” Carter said. “He was an outpatient, received the right antibiotics by his doctor without any problems of resistance, and the wound was drained and dealt with.”

As a result of the incident, Carter said that the locker rooms have undergone a stricter pattern of cleaning. Every weekend, the entire locker room is disinfected and the floors cleaned. The weight room, fitness lab, and locker room are also wiped down every other day.

“It’s important to sterilize the locker room because MRSA usually grows in a hot, humid, environment,” Carter said. “Overall, we have become more proactive, and have emphasized the importance of cleanliness.”

To raise awareness of the incident, a packet by the National Athletic Trainers’ Association (NATA) that discusses what MRSA is, its effects and how to prevent it was given to all fall athletes. Prevention techniques include washing hands regularly, keeping cuts and scrapes covered with a clean, dry bandage, disinfecting and wiping down athletic gear and practice surfaces such as mats, benches, and weight lifting equipment after each use, and showering immediately after practices and games.

The athletic department worked with the district nurses. Carter also attended a conference a week after the second incident at the CIF Symposium, a conference that requires schools to send two representatives every year, where one of the topics was MRSA.

“The speaker talked about the history of MRSA and how it’s prevalent in the United States,” he said. “It enlightened trainers, and was helpful.”

Football player Jason Kane (12) said that he had no idea what MRSA was before any of the incidents.

“It was a shock when it first happened,” he said. “The team was surprised especially when our coach told us that it could be fatal if not treated.”

Kane said he changed his habits in order to prevent the possibility of infection.

“I’ve been more of a clean person because of it,” he said. “I wash my clothes and clean my equipment more often.”

Football player Seth Adams (12) said that the team was worried for a while, but soon developed a way of dealing with the incident.

“After a while, it wasn’t as big of a deal,” Adams said. “We had to wipe down all our equipment immediately [following the second incident]. The shoulder pads though are already Staph-resistant. Now, we just wash our clothes regularly.”

After the incident, Seth also said that the team became more diligent about hygiene and care for injuries.

“Whenever we have a wound or a cut, we are more aware about cleaning it [immediately] afterwards, and just being more careful. I know that [MRSA] is dangerous, but if you take care of yourself, it shouldn’t be a problem.”

The athletes who recently contracted MRSA continued to play on the team after the incident. He keeps the wound clean and covered.

“He’s healing, and is allowing his body to get rid of it by the antibiotics,” Carter said. “Other than that, everything is normal, and he is able to play just as well.”