Daniel Fells, a tight end for the New York Giants football team, is fighting off a serious infection that could cost him his foot, the National Football League reported Sunday.
The 32-year-old athlete is battling an illness caused by methicillin-resistant Staphylococcus aureus (MRSA). MRSA -- a so-called "super-bug" -- causes infections that are resistant to many antibiotics, making it very difficult to treat.
Fells was admitted to the hospital with 104 degree fever, and has been in the hospital for a week. He has already had five surgeries as part of his treatment, the NFL said. As of Sunday, doctors were working to save his foot, according to published reports.
The infection seemed to develop after Fells received a cortisone shot to treat a toe and ankle injury, the NFL said. The Giants have been working with infectious-disease specialists, and have had their locker room, training rooms and meeting rooms sanitized, the NFL said.
