<p>I never knew what this was until researching it yesterday. It’s nothing as severe as staph which has been mentioned on these boards. All the kids are talking about it (and showing it off!), but the school has yet to notify parents. Most of the kids have it on their arms, which is unusual, so I think it may be on the desks. Has anyone ever dealt with a school outbreak like this?</p>
<p>Only during wrestling season. Wresters get it from the mats, and from each other. It needs a bacterial cream (by prescription) to eliminate. In the meantime, wear long sleeves and wash, wash, wash!!</p>
<p>One of my sons had this when he was small. Apparently the staff at his public school flipped out about it. It was visible because it was on his face. I had a note from his doctor which let the school know that he was not contagious (I believe it is 24 hours after applying antibiotic cream or taking oral antibiotics). The school made a big deal about it, but there was nothing that they could do. I kept sending my kid to school, and eventually it healed. It never spread through school.</p>
<p>It looks like the antibiotics stop the spread within 24-48 hours. Our school still hasn’t issued anything official on it. Yesterday the office told me that only 3 kids had been diagnosed, but I have 3 kids at that JH/HS and they all know several kids with it. One guessed it was up to 30 kids and we’re a small school. At least 3 on the football team have it and are covering it during practice.</p>
<p>The school might only be aware of 3 students (ie: parent/doctor notes brought in with a diagnosis). I don’t think that anything requires parents to give the diagnosis to the school.</p>
<p>Just so you know, impetigo CAN be caused by staph aureus (as well as by a form of strep). The diagnosis of impetigo just refers to a superficial bacterial skin infection. With all of the concerns around re: MRSA (methicillin-resistant staff aureus), which actually caused a death of a high school student in our area, I think parents would be well advised to keep a close eye on ANY skin infection and to have their child see the doctor sooner-rather than later. Also --keeping cuts/scrapes bandaged and frequent hand washing/handsanitizer may help. I personally find this outbreak scary. Sue</p>
<p>Impetigo is staph, but not nesc MRSA</p>
<p><a href=“http://www.nlm.nih.gov/medlineplus/impetigo.html[/url]”>http://www.nlm.nih.gov/medlineplus/impetigo.html</a></p>
<p>NEMom, my daughter got it quite frequently when she was young, too. Always on her face, just a spot or two around her nose. Bacitracin ointment usually worked like a charm back then. Of course, nowdays with the MRSA out there, it can be a very different story.</p>
<p>oregonianmom, my son used to pick at the sores at night (disgusting, I know), so it would take a long time to heal. He walked around with band-aids on his face sometimes during the day. We used bactroban, I believe (it was so long ago, that I no longer remember).</p>
<p>Wow, thanks for starting this thread! My D has a rough red patchy area on her arm that I thought was an allergic reaction to her metal bracelet, but will not go away. I will take her to the doctor tomorrow!</p>
<p>Thanks for the info on impetigo. I was watching the local new this morning and they mentioned another Toledo high school was “wiping down” after 3 students reported cases of MRSA. Maybe these types of infections have always been around, but are just getting more press lately.</p>
<p>Sorry…I just found the online news and it was just “staph” not MRSA. So this must be the same thing we’re experiencing. The fact that the weather has been unseasonably warm may be a contributing factor.</p>