Killer germ puts parents, educators on alert

When Sue Whalen packs school lunches for her two sons, she includes antiseptic wipes.

It's a precautionary measure taken from her training in the food service industry. But Whalen said you can't be too careful, especially as local cases MRSA in schools continue to be reported.

The superbug has been blamed for the death of a seventh-grader in Brooklyn, N.Y., and a 17-year-old Virginia high school senior this month.

Locally the cases have been far less serious, but have steadily increased in number.

Six MRSA cases have been reported in five area school districts since September, according to a survey of 29 school districts by The Enterprise. Of those six cases, two were reported at Silver Lake Regional High School in Kingston in the past 10 days, and one at Bridgewater-Raynham last week.

Single cases were reported earlier at public schools in Taunton, Wareham and Southeastern Regional Vocational in Easton.

Methicillin-resistant Staphylococcus aureus bacteria, or MRSA, have gained attention since a government report this month found more than 90,000 Americans get staph infections each year. MRSA is usually benign, but is potentially deadly.

The bacteria can be carried by healthy people, living on their skin or in their noses. Most drug-resistant staph cases are mild skin infections, but severe infections can enter the bloodstream or destroy flesh and become deadly.

The bacteria don't respond to penicillin-related antibiotics once commonly used to treat them, but they can be treated with other drugs.

“It's one of those highly contagious things, you do best to stay on top of it,” said Whalen. “It's everywhere.” Whalen's concern is real.

MRSA has reached beyond the boundaries of hospitals and health care settings to enter the community and is now showing up in schools across the country.

The federal Centers for Disease Control estimates more than 94,000 people developed a serious MRSA infection in 12,005, with most acquired in health care settings.

A recent study by the Journal of the American Medical Association found 14 percent of reported MRSA infections are considered to be community-associated or occurring in people who had no evidence of risks connected to health care settings.

MRSA is a bacterium spread through skin-to-skin contact, open wounds and damp environments, such as on athletic gear and clothing. That increases the risk in school athletic programs, though at least three of the local cases have not occurred within athletic programs, according to officials at Silver Lake and Bridgewater-Raynham school districts.

In response to the increase in community-acquired MRSA, school districts are stepping up cleaning and disinfecting procedures and informing students and parents of the risks.

Student athletes in Carver and Brockton took precautionary measures of cleaning out their lockers during the season. After two MRSA cases were reported at Silver Lake in the past 10 days, administrators now require all students to empty their lockers each Friday to allow custodians to take the added step of disinfecting during the weekends.

Principal Gary Lincoln said weights, locker rooms, sports equipment and even water bubblers at Apponequet Regional High School are being sterilized to ward off the bacteria.

“Our school nurse has been very vigilant in getting the information out and sharing it with the coaches,” said Whitman-Hanson Regional School Athletic Director James Daley.

But, a student athlete contacted late last week said she was unfamiliar with MRSA and had not received any information from the athletic depart ment.

“I'm surprised that they haven't told us,” said the student, a senior who asked that her name not be published. “The school should tell sports kids to take precautions.”

Student education and vigorous cleaning are key to avoiding MRSA, said Carver High School Athletic Director Mike Schultz.

“The coaches have information and talk to the kids about it,” added Mansfield High School Athletic Director Margaret Conaty.

And next week, the Massachusetts Interscholastic Athletic Association will be talking to athletic directors about it, spokesman Paul Wetzel said.

The topic is on the agenda for the sports health committee meeting on Nov. 5.

MRSA data is not collected by the state Department of Public Health, though new laws are being passed in other states to make it a reportable infection.

Right now, the focus has been on athletic equipment and sharing of towels and clothing among athletes in fall programs of football, soccer and field hockey.

“It's not going to end with the football season,” said Brockton High School Athletic Director John Boutin.

“Wrestling and hockey will be the next hot beds for the spread of this,” he said, citing the close body contact in wrestling and the equipment in hockey.

Brockton has been pro-active in addressing the threat of MRSA, primarily by following state health department guidelines, according to Boutin.

That includes using a solution of a tablespoon of bleach per one quart of water to clean locker rooms, lockers and even football equipment.

Silver Lake Principal Richard Kelley said the nurse's office and all common areas are being sterilized each weekend in addition to the regular cleaning. And, at B-R, classrooms occupied by the infected student are cleaned each day, officials said.

School nurse Marie Fahey also sent letters home to parents, advising them that the student in the night class had MRSA. The student has returned to classes after being treated and with a doctor's clearance, according to Fahey.

The precautions are easing the fears of some parents, including an East Bridgewater mother of two elementary school students who said parents are asked to send in cleaning supplies, an indication she believes speaks to the issue.

Lisa Dilworth, an East Bridgewater mother of two teenagers, including a Southeastern Voke student, said she knows first-hand about MRSA from her job at Quincy Medical Center.

“It really is out there,” said Dilworth. “We see it daily with patients in-house or out.” Dilworth said handwashing is the first and foremost way to keep bacteria at bay, and she advises to avoid at all costs sharing equipment or clothing.

“You can be healthy and get it. That's scary,” added Dilworth.

Elaine Allegrini of The Enterprise (Brockton, Mass.) can be reached at eallegrini@enterprisenews.com. Enterprise special correspondent Kimberly Cole contributed to this report.