A Lynch Station boy is dead after being hospitalized for more than a week with a MRSA infection.

Veronica Bonds said her son Ashton Bonds, 17, a senior at Staunton River High School in Bedford County, died Monday at Carilion Roanoke Memorial Hospital.

"I want people to know how sick it [MRSA] made my son," she said.

MRSA, or Methicillin-resistant Staphylococcus aureus, is colonized in approximately 2.3 million Americans, or 0.8 percent of the nation's population, according to the Centers for Disease Control and Prevention. Pronounced "mersa," the bacterium is not harmful until it enters the skin or organs and causes an infection.

At least three cases of MRSA infection have been reported in Bedford County schools in recent weeks. MRSA infections most commonly take the form of drainage-filled pimples or boils, according to the Virginia Department of Health.

Veronica Bonds remembers Ashton had a large pimple on his forehead, but it is unclear whether it was a MRSA infection.

Ashton went to Bedford Memorial Hospital on Oct. 4 after complaining of pain in his side, his mother said. He was sent home after doctors ruled out appendicitis.

Three days later, when Ashton was not feeling better, he was admitted to Bedford Memorial Hospital and later transported to Carilion Roanoke Memorial Hospital, Bonds said.

Last week doctors diagnosed Ashton with a MRSA infection that had spread to his kidneys, liver, lungs and the muscles around his heart.

"His lungs didn't recover," Bonds said.

Early Thursday morning, Ashton had to be sedated and put on a ventilator. He was about to undergo surgery to drain the infection from his lungs when doctors detected a blood clot near his heart.

"They couldn't do surgery," Bonds said. "But they were good doctors; they stuck by my son."

Ashton loved football and played last year at his high school. After he broke his leg in two places, his mother did not let him play this year.

"He was a happy kid," she said.

Late Monday night, more than a dozen of Ashton's friends had expressed their condolences on his MySpace Web page.

Bonds said she was not familiar with MRSA until Ashton came home from school with a letter about the bacteria.

"I plan to research this and do something with it," she said. "I don't want his death to be in vain."

Staunton River High School Principal Michael Kelly said counselors will be available today to console Ashton's classmates.