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Outbreak of headlines on sports pages

Infection Control Weekly Monitor, October 29, 2008

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Professional football fans may have wondered in the last week or so whether they were reading the sports pages or a journal on infectious disease.

Football players and the risk of infections have made recent headlines, drawing attention once again to the dangers of staph infections. First, tight end Kellen Winslow, of the Cleveland Browns, received a one-game suspension (later rescinded) after accusing team officials of concealing his staph infections, the latest of which required hospitalization. Then there was news that Indianapolis Colts quarterback Peyton Manning had developed an infection in his left knee earlier this year. And New England Patriots quarterback Tom Brady, who underwent surgery this fall to repair his injured left knee, is being treated for an unidentified infection that has required two additional procedures and may delay his rehabilitation.

Experts in sports medicine and epidemiology say the news highlights how prevalent infections, especially staph infections, are among professional athletes and in community settings, reported The New York Times. Like athletes in other contact sports, football players are prone to staph infections because of the sport’s skin contact, the frequency of cuts, and the warm, moist conditions in locker rooms, which can encourage the growth of bacteria, the Times reported.

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