Dangers in the Locker Room

Reported November 2006

PITTSBURGH (Ivanhoe Broadcast News) -- Athletes train themselves to push the limits. They learn to accept bumps, bruises and cuts that come along with the game. And it's not just football. That close contact can have consequences for basketball, baseball, volleyball -- any athlete who plays on a team.

An athlete's toughest opponent may not be the one he faces on the field, but in the locker room. An antibiotic-resistant strain of staph can be passed from player to player, and it's popping up in many places where athletes are in close contact.

High school volleyball player Shae Musolino ignored what started as a tiny bump on her knee, until it swelled so much her knee pads wouldn't fit. "Scared. Terrified. I started crying. I didn't know what to think," she says. "Being in volleyball, the first thing comes in my mind, 'I'm done for the season.'"

Infectious disease specialists tested fluid from Musolino's knee for what is known as MRSA, a strain of bacteria that is resistant to many antibiotics. Until recently, MRSA staph infections were rarely identified outside of a prison or hospital.

These days, athletes in contact sports are also at risk.

"Just in participating in a sport, they are going to have friction on their skin," Judy Martin, M.D., of Children's Hospital of Pittsburgh, tells Ivanhoe. "[It] rubs against their skin because of the protective equipment that they wear."

MRSA spreads when someone comes in contact with an infected person. It can also be spread by touching contaminated objects like equipment, clothing or a towel.

Dr. Martin says, "You don't want to share towels or washcloths because you're going to spread those bacteria back and forth to each other."

She says the MRSA bacterium has become resistant to common antibiotics because they have been used excessively in recent years. In some cases, experts say inappropriate use of antibiotics -- using them to treat colds and the flu, for example -- have contributed to their resistance.

In the last few years, some NFL football players for the Rams, Redskins and Dolphins all reportedly developed MRSA. For a college football player in Williamsport, Pennsylvania, it was fatal.

Musolino recovered and is back on the volleyball court, but she has revamped her post-game routine. "Any sports with pads, uniforms -- anything. Wash them. Daily. Keep them clean. Keep everything clean," she says.

Experts like Dr. Martin say that's the best way to keep athletes in the game, instead of on sidelines by an infection.

The American Society for Microbiology contributed to the information contained in the TV portion of this report.

Click here to Go Inside This Science or contact:

Judy Martin, M.D.
Pediatric Infectious Disease Specialist
Children's Hospital of Pittsburgh
Pittsburgh, PA
(412) 692-5016

American Society for Microbiology
Washington, D.C. 20036-2904
(202) 737-3600
http://www.asm.org

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