Vital Technologies, Inc.

The death of a Virginia teenager from a staph infection is raising awareness of a potential problem all over the country. Both grade schools and day care centers have reported spikes in staph infections. Staph is a bacteria that is present on the skin and in the nostrils of all people but usually is not problematic. Recent scares of what may become an epidemic involve MRSA, a strain of staph that is resistant to many antibiotics. MRSA has long been a problem in hospitals, but recently has become much more widespread.

Because it is able to spread by direct skin-to-skin contact, staph is a huge concern in schools, day care centers and gyms. Staph also has the ability to live outside the body. If your student or toddler is at a desk or playing in an area where another staph-carrying person has been, they now are susceptible to infection. In order for infection to occur, staph must get past the protective layer of skin. This means the best protection form staph is to keep open cuts, scrapes and bites covered.

If you suspect your little one may have contracted a staph infection, symptoms to watch for include tiny white-headed pimples at the base of a hair shaft, boils, infected bumps or blisters, redness or swelling of the tissue below the skin, a stye, or an infected wound. In the earliest stages of an infection, many people mistake their symptoms for a spider bite. The only way to confirm staph is to consult a doctor.

With staph infection in the news and incidences rising, it is important to prevent the infections as much as possible. The best method of prevention is knowledge and applying that knowledge. Many schools and day cares are now using anti-microbial products such as Vital Oxide to kill staph and MRSA that is present in their buildings. As a solution that is simply sprayed on surfaces around a classroom, Vital Oxide is one of the easiest ways to kill these infectious bacteria’s. Knowing that knowledge is the best defense, if your child’s school does not use such a product it is worth mentioning.