Treatment of community-associated methicillin-resistant Staphylococcus aureus.

Methicillin-resistant Staphylococcus aureus has emerged in the community among patient populations without traditional antibiotic resistance risk factors and is causing a variety of clinical syndromes, in particular skin and soft tissue infections. These infections can range from minor skin involvement that can be treated in an outpatient setting to more serious infections such as necrotizing fasciitis requiring hospitalization. Inpatient and outpatient healthcare providers must be aware of the treatment, prevention, and infection control practices for this emerging pathogen.