Q: My mother was in the hospital with pneumonia. I was very scared to visit her since there were at least two patients on her floor with what they call "MRSA." She recovered and is back home now, but I wanted to ask you: Was she at risk to catch these deadly bacteria? How do I know if she has? Should she be tested and how? I know it sounds like I am exaggerating, but with everything you hear on TV now one can get really scared. — Alexandra

A: You and your mother are both fine. No testing is needed. It is extremely unlikely that she caught MRSA in the hospital. Methicillin-resistant Staphylococcus aureus (MRSA) infection is caused by Staphylococcus aureus bacteria — often called "staph." Decades ago it was one of the first germs to outwit all but the most powerful drugs. Staph bacteria are normally found on the skin or in the nose of about one-third of the population. If you have staph on your skin or in your nose but aren't sick, you are said to be "colonized" but not infected with MRSA. Healthy people can be colonized with MRSA and have no ill effects; however, they can pass the germ to others.

Staph bacteria are generally harmless unless they enter the body through a cut or other wound, and even then they often cause only minor skin problems in healthy people. But in older adults and people who are ill or have weakened immune systems, ordinary staph infections can cause serious illness called MRSA.

In the 1990s, a type of MRSA began showing

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up in the wider community. Community-associated MRSA, or CA-MRSA, is responsible for many serious skin and soft tissue infections and for a serious form of pneumonia.

Staph infections, including MRSA, generally start as small red bumps that resemble pimples, boils or spider bites. Although the survival tactics of bacteria contribute to antibiotic resistance, humans bear most of the responsibility for the problem. Like other "superbugs," MRSA is the result of decades of excessive and unnecessary antibiotic use. Prescription drugs aren't the only source of antibiotics. In the United States, antibiotics can be found in beef cattle, pigs and chickens. The same antibiotics then find their way into municipal water systems when the runoff from feedlots contaminates streams and groundwater. Even when antibiotics are used appropriately, they contribute to the rise of drug-resistant bacteria because they don't destroy every germ they target. Germs that survive treatment with one antibiotic soon learn to resist others. That's why only a handful of drugs are now effective against most forms of staph.

Because hospital and community strains of MRSA generally occur in different settings, the risk factors for the two strains differ.

Risk factors for hospital-acquired (HA) MRSA include a current or recent hospitalization, residing in a long-term care facility, invasive devices and recent antibiotic use. The main risk factors for community-acquired (CA) MRSA are young age, participating in contact sports, sharing towels or athletic equipment, having a weakened immune system, living in crowded or unsanitary conditions and association with health-care workers. Doctors diagnose MRSA by checking a tissue sample or nasal secretions for signs of drug-resistant bacteria. Both hospital and community associated strains of MRSA still respond to certain medications. Hospitals are fighting back against MRSA infection by using surveillance systems that track bacterial outbreaks. Still, the best way to prevent the spread of germs is for health- care workers to wash their hands frequently, to properly disinfect hospital surfaces and to take other precautions such as wearing a mask when working with people with weakened immune systems.

In the hospital, people who are infected or colonized with MRSA are placed in isolation to prevent the spread of MRSA to other patients and health-care workers. Visitors and health-care workers caring for isolated patients may be required to wear protective garments and must follow strict hand washing procedures.

Here's what you can do to protect yourself, family members or friends from hospital-acquired infections:

- Ask all hospital staff to wash their hands before touching you — every time.

- Wash your own hands frequently.

-Ask to be bathed with disposable cloths treated with a disinfectant rather than with soap and water.

- Make sure that intravenous tubes and catheters are inserted and removed under sterile conditions.

- These common-sense precautions can help reduce your risk of community acquired MRSA: keep personal items personal, keep wounds covered, sanitize linens and wash your hands. Dr. Beata Skudlarska is a Bridgeport geriatrician. Send questions to Bridgeport Hospital Center for Geriatrics, 95 Armory Road, Stratford CT 06614 or geriatricmd@aol.com.