Brandon's Policy Paper

Brandon Waszgis
Microbiology
Section 1
October 4, 2008

Policy Paper on MRSA in Football

In today’s world people are involving themselves with many activities; with these activities people are then accessible to getting MRSA. Methicillin-resistant Staphylococcus aureus (MRSA) is becoming more known throughout the United States and the world. Methicillin was first discovered in 1959 to treat infections cause from penicillin-resistant Staphylococcus aureus (1). The United Kingdom in 1961 were the first to report that S. aureus had acquired a resistance to methicillin (MRSA), right after the UK saw this other observations were being discovered all across the world (1). MRSA is becoming a huge problem in hospitals and is traveling to nursing homes and out to communities. The evolutionary origin of MRSA is poorly understood, and no real evidence has been discovered.
Today MRSA is passed on from person-to-person by direct contact. Studies show that the passing on of the infection is carried through healthcare coworkers (2). To this day only one antibiotic has been proven to battle with MRSA and this antibiotic is vancomysin. There are some places in the world that have somewhat figured out a way to shut down the spread of this infection. In the Netherlands, Scandinavia and Western Australia, MRSA is uncommon, with sporadic outbreaks that are quickly contained (2). While over 50% of Staph aureus infections in the US are methicillin-resistant, in the Netherlands, that figure is less than 1%, in Belgium and France, countries that once had a high prevalence, MRSA has been stabilized and confined(2). In Paris hospitals, prevalence went from 55% in 1993 to 25% in 2002 (2). As a result, countries are figuring ways to treat this infection and overcome the troubles it puts in our lives.
There is evidence of a school getting rules passed to try and keep out MRSA. Montclair Kimberley Academy is one of many schools now in the US putting restrictions and laws into place to try and keep MRSA from infecting the people in the community (3).
After a boy died in Texas from MRSA, there is a lot being studied so that this occurrence will not happen again. Some results show that at least 276 football players were infected with MRSA from 2003 through 2005, a rate of 517 for each 100,000, according to the Texas studies (4). The U.S. Centers for Disease Control and Prevention in Atlanta reports a rate for the general population of 32 in 100,000 (4). Football players often become infected at the site of a turf burn and are misdiagnosed, said David Smith, co-author of a study showing that MRSA-related hospitalizations in the U.S. more than doubled from 1999 to 2005 (4). The boy that died showed no signs or symptoms of pain, out of nowhere he could not move his arms and legs. This boy had a turf burn, then the burn got infected, since MRSA has been known to infect open wounds, this is how it occurred.
MRSA is coming out of the hospital setting and starting to make its way into our communities. MRSA is even affecting the Professional Football League. A study was done with the St. Louis Rams, the results showed that 9% of the team was infected with MRSA and none showed any signs of this infection (5). A policy needs to be set to keep this horrible infection contained.

I. POLICY

A. Every school/higher education must inform all student athletes of MRSA, the signs and symptoms of MRSA, and if that school does not hold a mandatory meeting to meet with all students in attendance and a person from the Center of Disease Control, that school will be fined.

B. Every school/higher education will have an extra amount of money just to spend on cleaning products for weight rooms, locker rooms, and classrooms. This amount will be determined by whether it is a state or private school.

C. Schools/higher education will not be allowed to have class if an incident occurs where MRSA is found. If found in anywhere on school grounds then a mass clean with need to be done and then class will resume after test are done to make sure all MRSA infections do not exists.

Schools will have members from the state making sure they are keeping up with the cleaning and schedule the meetings to have with students. If a school violates the policy, the school will have to pay money fines and possibly put on academic probation. If a school has unclean areas on campus this will result in a $10,000 fine. If a school does not hold the meeting for student athletes informing them on MRSA, that school may be forced to miss the first game of each sport or until that meeting occurs. In order for this policy to take work, the Supreme Court must support this policy, and must finance for the funds to make this policy work. The Supreme Court must also let schools now if a new antibiotic comes into play for MRSA. The Supreme Court will also need to inform the parents and students attending these select schools, of the antibiotic resistance from increasing anymore.
Antibiotic resistance is causing many new difficulties in today’s society. Schools are not letting students know of all the risks of MRSA and the steps that the students need to follow to stay away from getting sick with MRSA. The Supreme Court will be called upon to get help and also from the Center of Disease Control. This policy needs to be put into effect and possible have laboratory tests to continue so that maybe another antibiotic can be discovered to treat MRSA.
References
1. Enright, Mark C, et al. "The evolutionary history of methicillin - resistant Staphylococcus aureus(MRSA)." PNAS. Ed. Christopher T Walsh. 16 Apr. 2002. 5 Oct. 2008 http://www.pnas.org/content/99/11/7687.full>.
2. Grunden, Naida. "MRSA: a short history of a monster microbe." Pittsburgh Regional Healthcare Initiative. Dec. 2003. 5 Oct. 2008 http:/www.prhi.org/docs/MRSAa%20short%20history%20of%20a%20monster%20microbe12-1-2003.pdf>.
3. Sports Safety IQ. "MRSA Superbugs, Part II: Prevention at School and at the Gym ." Sports Safety IQ. June 2007. Bollinger. 5 Oct. 2008 http://www.sportssafetyiq.com/contact_info.html>.
4. Epstein, Victor Epstein. "Texas Football Succumbs to Virulent Staph Infection From Turf." Bloomberg [Houston] 21 Dec. 2007. 5 Oct. 2008 http://www.bloomberg.com/apps/news?pid=newsarchive&sid=alxhrJDn.cdc#>.
5. Sophia V. Kazakova, M.D., M.P.H., Ph.D., Jeffrey C. Hageman, M.H.S.,
Matthew Matava, M.D., Arjun Srinivasan, M.D., Larry Phelan, B.S., B.A., Bernard Garfinkel, M.D., Thomas Boo, M.D., Sigrid McAllister, B.S., M.T.(A.S.C.P.), Jim Anderson, B.S., A.T.C., Bette Jensen, M.M.Sc., Doug Dodson, B.S., David Lonsway, M.M.Sc., Linda K. McDougal, M.S., Matthew Arduino, Dr.P.H., Victoria J. Fraser, M.D., George Killgore, Dr.P.H., Fred C. Tenover, Ph.D., Sara Cody, M.D., and Daniel B. Jernigan, M.D., M.P.H. "A Clone of Methicillin-Resistant Staphylococcus aureus among Professional Football Players." New England Journal of Medicine Volume 352:468-475.Number 5 (Feb. 2005). Abstract. 5 Oct. 2008 <http://content.nejm.org/cgi/content/full/352/5/468>.

Unless otherwise stated, the content of this page is licensed under Creative Commons Attribution-ShareAlike 3.0 License