Staphylococcus aureus is the most common cause of staph infections. It is a spherical bacterium, frequently part of the skin flora found in the nose and on skin. About 20% of the population are long-term carriers of ''S. aureus''. ''S. aureus'' can cause a range of illnesses from minor skin infections, such as pimples, impetigo (may also be caused by ''Streptococcus pyogenes''), boils (furuncles), cellulitis folliculitis, carbuncles, scalded skin syndrome and abscesses, to life-threatening diseases such as pneumonia, meningitis, osteomyelitis, endocarditis, toxic shock syndrome (TSS), bacteremia and septicemia.
Bacterial cells of the bacteria (Staphylococcus aureus) which is one of the causal agents of
mastitis in dairy cows. Its large capsule protects the organism from attack by the cow’s immunological defenses. Magnified 50,000X. Image Credit: arsusda.gov
Its incidence is from skin, soft tissue, respiratory, bone, joint, endovascular to wound infections. It is still one of the five most common causes of nosocomial infections, often causing postsurgical wound infections. Abbreviated to ''S. aureus'' or ''Staph aureus'' in medical literature, ''S. aureus'' should not be confused with the similarly named and similarly dangerous (and also medically relevant) species of the genus ''Streptococcus''.
''S. aureus'' was discovered in Aberdeen, Scotland in 1880 by the surgeon Sir Alexander Ogston in pus from surgical abscesses. Each year some 500,000 patients in American hospitals contract a staphylococcal infection.
Further Reading
This article is licensed under the Creative Commons Attribution-ShareAlike License.
It uses material from the Wikipedia article on
"Staphylococcus aureus"
All material adapted used from Wikipedia is available under the terms of the
Creative Commons Attribution-ShareAlike License.
Wikipedia® itself is a registered trademark of the Wikimedia Foundation, Inc.