Recent news have focused on the staph infections in Kellen Winslow and Payton Manning, as well as the unidentified infection of Tom Brady’s knee.

Are football players more prone to contracting MRSA?

Like athletes in other contact sports, football players are prone to staph infections because of their sport’s skin-on-skin contact, the frequency of cuts and the warm, moist conditions in locker rooms, which encourage the growth of bacteria. Because they are regulars in surgery wards, athletes are susceptible to infections there, too.

NFL football players receive the best care possible. The fact that infections can still complicate their post-op courses means that no one should take any surgical procedure for granted.

Update:
Surgeon Jeffrey Parks comments further on the MRSA epidemic in NFL players.