Infectious Disease Epidemiology

MRSA in Arizona

Arizona Department of Health Services (ADHS) requires laboratories to report invasive MRSA infections. This means that only cases where a positive laboratory test identified the bacteria in a normally sterile part of the body (i.e. blood, bones) are counted. These are typically Healthcare-Associated MRSA (HA-MRSA). Skin infections, which are typically caused by Community-Associated MRSA (CA-MRSA), are not tracked by ADHS. ADHS also does not collect information on deaths due to MRSA.

What is Staphylococcus aureus?

Staphylococcus aureus, often referred to as “staph,” are bacteria commonly carried on the skin or in the nose of healthy people. Staph can sometimes cause an infection. Most of these are minor skin infections and can be treated without antibiotics. However, staph also can cause serious infections such as surgical wound infections or pneumonia.

What is methicillin-resistant Staphylococcus aureus (MRSA)?

Some staph are resistant to commonly prescribed antibiotics such as penicillin, amoxicillin, and cephalexin.

Who gets staph or MRSA infections?

The majority of MRSA infections occur in hospitals or other healthcare settings. These infections are called healthcare-associated MRSA (HA-MRSA). For more on HA-MRSA, click here.

Staph and MRSA can also cause illness in healthy persons in the community. MRSA infections in persons who have not been hospitalized or had a medical procedure in the past year are known as Community-Associated (CA-MRSA) infections. CA-MRSA usually causes skin infections, such as pimples, boils, and "spider bites," and occur in otherwise healthy people. These infections can be found in schools, in prisons, and on athletic teams. For more information on CA-MRSA, click here.

For more information:

For the General Public:
[ADHS] Information for Parents and Students (flyer) [PDF 155K]
[ADHS] Información sobre el SARM para Padres y Estudiantes [PDF 160K]
[CDC] Community-Associated MRSA Information for the Public
[CDC] Información para el público sobre el SARM originado en la comunidad

For Schools:
[ADHS] Letter to School Administrators [PDF 44K]
[CDC] MRSA in Schools

For Clinicians:
[ADHS] Clinician Fact Sheet [PDF 49K]
[CDC] Community-Associated MRSA Information for Clinicians
[CDC] Management of Drug-Resistant Organisms in Healthcare Settings, 2006 [PDF 233K]
[CDC] Guideline for Isolation Precautions: Prevention Transmission of Infectious Agents in Healthcare settings, 2007

For Athletes:
[CDC] MRSA in Athletes
[Minnesota Dept of Health] Skin Infections in Athletes
[National Athletic Trainers Association] CDC Warns Against Resistant Staph Strain [PDF 420K]

Note: Links marked by [PDF] require Acrobat Reader^™to view. Links identified with [CDC] are maintained by the Centers for Disease Control and Prevention.