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Diseases & Topics

MRSA (Methicillin-Resistant Staphylococcus aureus)

Staphylococcus aureus, often called "staph", is a common type of bacteria that can be found in the nose and on the skin of about one out of every three people. Methicillin-resistant Staphylococcus aureus, or MRSA, are staph bacteria that are not killed by many of the antibiotics doctors most commonly prescribed for staph infections in the past. Until the mid-1990s, MRSA mainly affected patients in hospitals and other healthcare settings. Since that time, MRSA has rapidly become one of the most common causes of skin and soft tissue infections among otherwise healthy people in the community. Outbreaks of MRSA have occurred in healthcare settings, in homes, on sports teams, in prisons, in daycare centers, and in other settings where people have close contact or share equipment and personal items.

In community settings, MRSA most often causes skin infections in an otherwise well person, but it can cause bloodstream infections, joint infections, pneumonia, or other severe infections, particularly in people with other health issues. Learn more about Community-associated MRSA.

MRSA is most often spread through direct physical contact with an infected person. Draining lesions are highly infectious and are an important source of spread. MRSA can also be spread by touching objects that have been soiled with drainage from an infected wound, such as hospital equipment or furniture, bandages, towels or athletic equipment. In healthcare settings (such as hospitals and nursing homes), good hand hygiene and other basic infection prevention steps are the best way to prevent the spread of MRSA.

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