MRSA infections rising in childrens' ear, nose, throat

A new study has concluded that there's been a large increase in the number of methicillin-resistant staphylococcus aureus (MRSA) infections found in kids' ears, noses and throats between 2001 and 2006. The increase also includes sinus infections and abscesses in the tonsils and throat.

The study, which appears in this month's Archives of Otolaryngology, found a total of 21,009 pediatric head and neck infections caused by staph during the five-year period studied. The percentage caused by MRSA shot up during that period, from almost 12 percent to 28 percent.

Researchers drew the information from a database collecting lab results from about 300 hospitals across the U.S. However, they concluded that almost 60 percent of MRSA infections found in the study were contracted outside of a hospital.

To find out more about the study:
- read this Associated Press piece

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Community MRSA getting more dangerous, CDC says