Flesh-eating disease is also known as necrotizing fasciitis (NF), which means an infection that destroys the fascia, a layer of tissue above the muscles.
The form of NF that is causing alarm is caused by an invasive form of a very common bug, Group A Streptococcus (GAS), better known as "strep." GAS is responsible for all those "strep throats" that are commonly diagnosed (although "strep throat" diagnoses are often wrong, and are actually due to viruses, not "strep," but that's cause for another story).
Most people who encounter "strep" don't develop symptoms but end up as carriers, meaning they can pass it on to others, who may be more susceptible.
For reasons we don't yet understand, GAS can suddenly become more invasive - it seems to do that in cycles every few years - and when it does, it can interact with some people's unique susceptibility (some genetic difference or other factor - being elderly, for example, or diabetic, or during a chicken pox infection) to produce complications such as life-threatening NF or toxic shock syndrome.
So what should you do? Start by relaxing and remembering that if you want to worry about something, you're more likely to die from pneumonia because you didn't get a flu shot than you are from NF.
Second, use good hygiene techniques, which, when you think about it, is always good advice. In fact, if you listened to your mother and washed your hands more often, you'd lower your risks of getting alls sorts of infections, including "strep."
That aside, if you get a cut or nick, clean it with soap and water, and perhaps some antiseptic. There is absolutely no proof, though, that you get extra protection if you apply antibiotic creams to the injury. That kind of antibiotic overuse may even make things worse eventually in that it may lead to more drug-resistant strains of bacteria.
If you have a cut or wound that is becoming swollen, or looks infected, or one that has developed a red streak, and especially if you get a fever or don't feel well or if the pain from the minor wound seems out of proportion to the injury, get it checked out, preferably ASAP.
