Thursday, Nov. 22, 2007

Parents question infection response

Complaints rise as staph surfaces at county schools

Some parents said school officials should have done more to inform them about antibiotic-resistant staph infections, which have been emerging at campuses in Stanislaus County.

"It's something parents ought to be notified about," said Trina Miller, who has a daughter in high school.

"I know they don't want to start a panic, but it would be fair for people to know the diagnoses have showed up at a particular school."

Cases reported at Downey and Beyer high schools this week, a life-threatening case of a Somerset Middle School student, and suspected cases reported last month at Hughson High School are not isolated.

Turlock Unified School District officials said they were alerted Nov. 15 to a confirmed case of methicillin-resistant staphylococcus aureus at Turlock High School, and Oakdale Joint Unified School District said Wednesday it's had three cases. The districts sent letters to parents, advising them of the warning signs and how to take precautions.

Skin infections from MRSA have been reported at schools across the country in recent years, so it wasn't likely that Modesto-area schoolchildren would be immune.

The infections are known to spread where people congregate, whether it's day care centers, classrooms, locker rooms, households or military barracks.

"It started surfacing in our schools about a year and a half ago," said Shari Lowe, lead nurse for Modesto City Schools. She said she wasn't at liberty to identify all the campuses where infections were reported.

School officials dealt with the infections on an individual basis. The na- tional Centers for Disease Control and Prevention advises that it isn't necessary to notify the community about a single MRSA case, but school officials should use their judgment.

Lowe said the district regularly has informed school athletic programs about the health issue because athletes are at higher risk of staph infections. Also, school nurses follow up to ensure infected students receive medical attention.

Dr. John Walker, health officer for Stanislaus County, said his office started working with school nurses on MRSA infections in summer 2005 and advisories went out that year to health care providers and school athletic programs.

Walker said he believes cases have surfaced recently because of public awareness -- people are paying closer attention to skin lesions and seeking treatment -- and also because of the increased prevalence of antibiotic-resistant staph that circulates in the community.

Over the years, staph mutated into forms that made them resistant to some antibiotics and are fairly contagious. The germs are transmitted by skin-to-skin contact.

Walker said a common hypothesis is that the infections occur in cuts or other breaks in the skin. But he said he is most concerned about people sharing towels or picking up germs from moist surfaces. Some infections such as cellulitis can start in hair follicles.

"I think this is something we will be dealing with for a long time," Walker said Wednesday. "I think that when we arm ourselves with information and increased awareness, we can make a difference in prevention."

Still, some parents said the word hasn't gotten to them.

Dianna Milam of Oakdale said she was unaware of the health issue until her son got a pimple on his neck and it turned into a knot overnight. Her son is diabetic, so she doesn't take any chances with his health. She took him to a doctor right away.

He has been on antibiotics for a week. "I've never dealt with anything like this," Milam said Wednesday. "I didn't know this was an issue."