HARTFORD, Conn. -- A dangerous bacteria -- strong enough to knock football players off the field and basketball players off the court -- has surfaced in Connecticut communities.

Channel 3 I-Team reporter Kara Sundlun reported that doctors call the superbug Methicillin-Resistant Staphylococcus Aureus (MRSA).

Sundlun likened it to a super Staphylococcus infection resistant to some antibiotics, saying it used to be something only found in hospitals -- but now it's spreading in the community.

Bonnie Capasso's son, Jason, contracted MRSA after back surgery.

"They had to keep bringing him into surgery to clean the wound out because the infection was just eating away in his back," she said.

Before catching MRSA, Jason was young and healthy. After MRSA, his mom worried about losing her son and more surgery was the only solution.

"It would have killed him. It would have killed him," Capasso said.

Capasso has launched a new program to encourage better hygiene at Yale-New Haven Hospital.

MRSA Cases Increase In Connecticut

"There's one type of MRSA that makes very large boils that are large abscesses and can get you sick so you have fever, you stop eating and you end up in the hospital." - Dr. Henry Feder UConn Health Center professor & Connecticut Children's Medical Center physician

The Channel 3 I-Team discovered that cases of community-acquired MRSA are on the rise in Connecticut, up from 214 cases in 2001 to 302 cases last year.

Sundlun reported the bacteria causes painful boils that can go away on their own, but a dangerous strain can cause serious infection that requires immediate medical attention.

Dr. Henry Feder is a professor of family medicine and pediatrics at the University of Connecticut Health Center in Farmington and a practicing doctor of infectious diseases at the Connecticut Children's Medical Center.

He said, "There's one type of MRSA that makes very large boils that are large abscesses and can get you sick so you have fever, you stop eating and you end up in the hospital."

Who's At Risk For MRSA?

The Channel 3 I-Team discovered that people who play sports have an increased risk for contracting the disease. Non-athletes also face risks if an open wound comes into contact with an infected person.

Feder treated UConn football players for MRSA two years ago.

"I've dealt with the UConn football team that had, at first, one player and then another player and then multiple players that were getting abscesses and getting them sick. And, some even ended up in the hospital," he said.

The Channel 3 I-Team also found 10 members of the football team at Sacred Heart University in Fairfield had MRSA, two of whom ended up in the hospital. Last year, another case involved a high school lacrosse team.

Last month, Boston Celtics players Paul Pierce and Delonte West were benched for infections.

So, why are athletes more at risk?

"Staph is part of their environment because they sweat a lot, there's a lot on their towels, on their clothing, on their bodies, and they're rubbing against each other in contact sports abrading the skin," Feder explained.

He added, "So, if someone has Staph on their skin, and they abrade someone else's, and they put MRSA there, and get unlucky, and it's the bad type, the person who gets infected can end up in the hospital."

What's Being Done To Prevent Infections?

The Channel 3 I-Team has learned that strict guidelines are in place to prevent student wrestlers from competing when they have any kind of skin infection.

For other sports, the I-Team found no hard rules -- it's up to the coaches and players.

Doctors said prevention really is the best medicine for this nasty bug.

"Good personal hygiene, good hand-washing, not sharing towels or linens, that type of thing (can help). And, if you have a wound, it should be covered," said Dr. Louise Dembry, director of epidemiology at Yale-New Haven Hospital.

Doctors said that because the bugs are resistant to antibiotics, it's important for doctors to culture the sore to determine whether it's a superbug.

And, if you're at the hospital, don't assume doctors and nurses practice perfect hygiene. A recent study found only a little more than half of them wash their hands adequately.

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