BRIEF: Staph Infections at Putnam High Treated

Oct 27, 09:16 AM

Current Headlines: By Keich Whicker, The Macon Telegraph, Ga.

Oct. 27--EATONTON -- The principal of Putnam County High said Friday the school has not suffered an outbreak of the drug-resistant staph infection known as MRSA in recent weeks.

Mark Sertich said three or four students at the high school were stricken with staph infections about three weeks ago, but all of them have been treated by doctors.

None of the students suffered from an MRSA infection, he said.

MRSA is short for methicillin-resistant Staphylococcus aureus, which is a drug-resistant version of a normal staph infection that can be deadly if contracted. Most MRSA infections occur in institutional settings such as hospitals or nursing homes, according to the Centers for Disease Control and Prevention.

However, a recent spate of high-profile infections -- some of which resulted in deaths -- at schools have attracted more attention to the infection, which the CDC recently said is more common than was previously believed.

Sertich said he has been receiving calls from concerned parents about the infections at his school, but he stressed "nothing abnormal" occurred there.

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