When Infection Occurs

• For those who carry staph bacteria in their nose, touching the nose, then transferring this bacteria to a wound or cut can cause a minor to serious skin infection. This bacteria also can be transferred from one person to another.
  
  

Symptoms

• A staph infection in the nose may begin as a swollen or painful lump, particularly around a nose hair follicle. The nose area may also swell, turn red or feel warm to the touch.
  
  

Notify a Doctor

• While some staph infections can be minor, those accompanied by a fever, swelling or a pus-filled boil or lump in the nose require immediate medical care.
  
  

Treatments

• Often staph bacteria in the nose do not respond to antibiotic pills or injections. Instead, a physician often prescribes a topical antibiotic ointment to be applied to the skin. The ointment should be applied inside each nostril several times per day.
  
  

Prevention

• While staph bacteria may be commonplace inside the nose, the best prevention for infections is frequent hand-washing after touching the nose. People also should refrain from wiping discharge from their nose onto their skin.