MRSA bacteria are pathogenic, this is the name given to a group of bacteria that belong to the Staphylococcus aureus family of bacteria which have grown resistant to methicillin-type antibiotics. MRSA stands for:
Methicillin-resistant Staphylococcus aureus.
Staphyloccocus aureus bacteria are often carried on people's skin and sometimes in their noses and back of their throats. People carrying the bacteria who are healthy are said to be colonized, but not infected. The bacteria, however, can cause serious infections, such as pneumonia, blood, bone and surgical wound infections, as well as less serious infections such as impetigo, cellulitis and small abscesses or boils under the right conditions.