Meningitis Outbreaks

[DB]

http://www.2theadvocate.com/news/2297431.html

Students treated for possible meningitis exposure

By RICHARD BURGESS
Acadiana bureau
Published: Feb 11, 2006
LAFAYETTE — The University of Louisiana at Lafayette has treated more than 30 students with meningitis antibiotics and plans to vaccinate others who might have had close contact with three meningitis victims, state Office of Public Health and university officials said Friday.

Public health officials Thursday reported three cases of meningitis, two that resulted in the hospitalization of ULL students and in the death of a former university student.

The strain of bacterial meningitis in all three cases has been identified as a type spread only through close contact, such as kissing or sharing food, drinks or cigarettes, said Dr. Tina Stefanski, Acadiana regional medical director for the state Office of Public Health.

As of Friday, the university had administered antibiotics to a group of 30-40 people who might have had close contact with the meningitis victims, ULL spokeswoman Julie Simon-Dronet said.

The Office of Public Health has also identified two at-risk groups who will be administered precautionary vaccinations because they could have had close contact with the three victims.

The groups include residents of the Voorhies building at ULL’s Legacy Park, where one student with meningitis lives, and members of fraternities and sororities.

The vaccine is in limited supply but doses are expected to be delivered as early as Monday, according to a news release from the university.

University and public health officials declined to identify the three people who had been affected by the disease, and Stefanski said her office is still investigating their social connections.

Simon said only that the two surviving students were a male and a female.

Lafayette television station KLFY reported that the fatal case was one of its camera operators, 19-year-old Cameron Matthew Andrus, a St. Thomas Moore High School graduate who attended ULL last semester and was a member of the Theta Xi fraternity.

Andrus’ obituary notice also listed his cause of death as meningitis.

A written statement issued by the Theta Xi fraternity’s national office said that fraternity “mourns the loss of the young man and is concerned for the safety and welfare of all members and students in Lafayette, Louisiana.”

Meningitis is a rare and sometimes fatal disease usually caused by a viral or bacterial infection.

Stefanski advised residents against panic.

“It’s not as contagious as the cold or the flu,” she said.

But Stefanski said residents should follow basic hygiene practices, such as hand washing and not eating or drinking after others.

Stefanski also said the antibiotics used to treat meningitis and the vaccine are not fail proof.

Anyone who feels the onset of meningitis symptoms should consult a health-care provider, she said.

The common early symptoms for meningitis are fever and headache with neck stiffness.

For information on meningitis from ULL, visit http://www.safety.louisiana.edu.

[DB]

Re: Meningitis Outbreaks

Medical team’s investigation of meningococcal deaths complete
http://www.estripes.com/article.asp?...&article=34994

Army doctors: Timing of three unrelated cases a ‘rare event’ </B>

By Kevin Dougherty, Stars and Stripes
European edition, Sunday, February 12, 2006


The U.S. Army medical team investigating three fatal cases of meningococcal disease in Germany left for the United States on Saturday to prepare its report on what its leader called “one of those rare events.”
What’s odd about the three cases is that they occurred within a short period of time in roughly the same geographical area, and yet are unrelated from an epidemiological standpoint, said Army Col. Bruno Petruccelli.

Petruccelli, the team chief, said medical officials were surprised at how rapidly the health of the victims deteriorated. Two of the three — Pvt. Dave Robbins, 20, and Air Force civilian Lindsey Ferris, 26 — died within hours of seeking medical care. The third, Kimberly Wesson, an Army spouse, survived for two days.

Such a rapid progression towards death “always scares doctors,” said Petruccelli, director of epidemiology and disease surveillance at the U.S. Army Center for Health Promotion and Preventive Medicine. “This is a scary disease, even for providers.”

U.S. military health officials said Friday they know of no other active cases involving U.S. personnel in Germany. The three deaths, which occurred between Jan. 28 and Feb. 3, represent the only known cases this year in Germany within the American community.

Across Germany there have been at least 66 meningococcal cases since the beginning of the year, said Wiebke Hellenbrand, an epidemiologist and leading expert at the Robert Koch Institute in Berlin. Ten of the cases were fatal, she said. The mortality rate in Germany for the disease ranges from 8 percent to 10 percent, which is comparable to the United States.

Hellenbrand said there is no known link between the disease and the military, German or American. Since December 2003, there have been four cases of the disease in the German military. None proved fatal, she said.

In her three years at the institute, Hellenbrand said “this is the first time we’ve had anything to do with the U.S. military.”

Last year, according to the European Regional Medical Command, there were four cases of meningococcal disease in the American community.

From 1998 to 2004, the yearly number of cases documented by ERMC ranged from none to two. Command officials could not immediately say how many of those cases were fatal.

To contract the disease, a person usually has to be exposed to an infected individual for an extended period, typically four hours or more. Often the setting is relatively confined and crowded, such as a college dormitory or military barracks.

A meningococcal vaccine shot “is one of several immunizations given during basic training,” said Army Lt. Col. William Corr, the preventive medicine consultant for ERMC.

Wintertime is an especially active time for meningococcal bacteria.
“Actually there is a predominance of cases in the first quarter of [any] year,” said Ulrich Vogel, a professor of infectious disease at the German National Reference Laboratory for Meningococci in W&#252;rzburg, Germany.
Meningococcal disease comes in two forms: meningitis and septicaemia. Typically, meningococcal bacteria are not highly contagious. To contract meningococcal disease a person has to come in contact with the respiratory secretions of someone who is carrying the bacteria. A person can carry the bacteria, often for only a short time, and display none of the symptoms.

Symptoms associated with meningitis include fever, headaches, stiff neck and nausea, according to the Meningitis Research Foundation. In this form, bacterial toxins can cause inflammation of the brain or spinal cord, or both.

Wesson, 23, the wife of a 1st Infantry Division soldier based in Schweinfurt, died of meningitis.

Robbins and Ferris, on the other hand, were stricken with septicaemia, the deadlier form of meningococcal disease. Septicaemia occurs when bacteria in a person’s blood multiples, generating poisons that make a person feel ill and feverish. In turn, the poisons damage the walls of blood vessels, causing blood to seep out, which will shut down a person’s circulatory system.

There are vaccines for meningococcal disease, but there also are several strands of the disease, and some don’t respond to any of the inoculants on the market, medical officials have said.

None of the three Americans who died knew or had social contact with one another. And all had different strands of the disease, Petruccelli said.

Petruccelli and his team will return to the center’s headquarters at Aberdeen Proving Ground, Md., to prepare an interim summary followed by a final report that should be completed around the end of March.

“This is one of those rare events,” Petruccelli said Friday. The timing and lethality represent “a very unfortunate coincidence” of three separate cases occurring all at once.

[DB]

Unlikely meningitis passed on

http://www.auburnpub.com/articles/20...ews/news04.txt

Unlikely meningitis passed on

By Linda Ober / The Citizen
Friday, February 10, 2006 10:26 AM EST
<TABLE class=photo-bdr cellSpacing=0 cellPadding=0 align=right border=0><TBODY><TR><TD vAlign=top></TD></TR><TR><TD class=cutline vAlign=top></TD></TR></TBODY></TABLE>Cayuga County health officials want residents to know the type of meningitis that caused the death of a Victory woman Tuesday is a severe disease - but one that is rare and not very contagious.

?There's no need for people to be especially concerned (that they will contract the disease),? said Kathleen Cuddy, deputy director of health services for the Cayuga County Health Department. ?Unlike some forms of meningitis, this one is not highly contagious.?

Emergency personnel found Anna J. Gunton, 52, unconscious at her home Monday afternoon. She was pronounced dead at University Hospital Tuesday evening.

State and local police investigated Gunton's death after the ambulance crew raised concerns about the nature of her injuries.

On Wednesday, the Onondaga County medical examiner attributed the cause of death to bacterial meningitis, an infection of the fluid in the spinal cord and the fluid that surrounds one's brain.

A media release from Cayuga County Sheriff Rob Outhouse said that the injuries Gunton sustained were likely the result of a state of delirium caused by the disease.

<TABLE class=clear-table cellSpacing=0 cellPadding=0 align=right border=0><TBODY><TR><TD vAlign=top><!-- AdSys ad not found for news/local_news:middle --></TD></TR></TBODY></TABLE>The type of meningitis Gunton suffered from was pneumococcal meningitis, Cuddy said, which is caused by the Streptococcus pneumoniae bacteria and is one of several bacterial strains of the disease.

While bacterial meningitis can be fatal or lead to brain damage if not immediately treated, there is also a viral form that is less dangerous, according to the Centers for Disease Control and Prevention.

Both kinds of meningitis are spread by close contact such as kissing, coughing and sneezing, but neither is air-borne, said Dr. Phillip Gioia, medical consultant to the county health department.

Monday afternoon, emergency personnel responded to Gunton's residence at 2141 Brandt Road after a man called to report an unconscious female bleeding from her mouth.

<TABLE class=photo-bdr cellSpacing=0 cellPadding=0 align=right border=0><TBODY><TR><TD vAlign=top></TD></TR><TR><TD class=cutline vAlign=top></TD></TR></TBODY></TABLE>Outhouse said that the ambulance crew, fire department and state and county investigators who were on scene have all been notified of the meningitis case. In all circumstance, investigators wear protective equipment, such as gloves, footwear and protective suits, when collecting evidence in order to reduce the chances of contamination to the evidence or person, Outhouse said.

?The sergeant most involved in evidence collection is taking close examination of his condition,? he added.

Gioia said that the viral forms of meningitis are often more contagious than the bacterial strains.

It's unlikely that those who came into contact with Gunton - including those who worked with her at Marshall's on Grant Avenue in Auburn - will develop meningitis, Gioia said, noting the bacteria will rarely cause significant disease even if it is spread.

Still, he added, it's important for those who were around Gunton to monitor their health.

?It's always a good idea to be vigilant of a stiff neck or bleeding of skin,? Gioia said, noting that individuals need to immediately seek medical care in such instances.

Gioia said that though meningitis usually strikes infants or the elderly and is not common for a 52-year-old woman, the germs are always around, as the bacteria is latent in some individuals.

Germs also like to take advantage of weaknesses in the immune system, he said. The bacteria could have gotten into Gunton's throat, after which time Gunton might have contracted the flu or other viral illness, thereby decreasing her defenses, he said.

Most meningitis strains, including pneumococcal, have vaccines available. Pneumococcal vaccines are recommended for infants and those 60 and older, as well as people who have had pneumonia or have suffered frequent respiratory infections, Gioia said.

[DB]

Re: Meningitis Outbreaks

http://allafrica.com/stories/200602130526.html

Nairobi
Two MPs have appealed to the Government to act on an outbreak of meningitis in West Pokot District.

Kacheliba MP Samuel Poghisio and Saboti MP Davis Nakitare wondered why the Ministry of Health had not responded to the outbreak in the last four weeks.

Poghisio said the disease had claimed 20 lives and that residents of West Pokot were seeking treatment and vaccination in neighbouring Uganda. He said most of those affected were school children.

The two MPs were speaking at a Mombasa hotel after attending a workshop of the Parliamentary Committee on Defence and Foreign Relations. Poghisio said the situation had been complicated by famine and could claim more lives if no action was taken. He said the hardest hit areas were Konyao, Alale and Kiwawa, which border Uganda.

Poghisio said Uganda was fighting the disease while Kenya had not responded. They questioned Health minister Charity Ngilu's silence, saying the death toll had increased since the disease was first reported.
"We want the Ministry of Health to dispatch medical personnel to West Pokot and combat the outbreak," the MPs said.

<TABLE cellSpacing=0 cellPadding=9 width=180 align=left border=0><TBODY><TR><TD align=right></TD></TR></TBODY></TABLE>

Nakitare said the meningitis outbreak was causing concern in West Pokot, Trans Nzoia and Turkana districts and urged the Government to send a medical team to the districts urgently.

"We need to vaccinate residents to prevent the spread of the disease in the three districts," said Nakitare

[DB]

Re: Meningitis Outbreaks

http://www.wkyt.com/Global/story.asp?S=4504302&nav=4CAL
Bacterial Meningitis Suspected After Inmate Dies
<SCRIPT language=JavaScript>var wn_last_ed_date = getLEDate("Feb15,2006,12:25 AM EST"); document.write(wn_last_ed_date);</SCRIPT>Feb 15, 2006, 12:25 AM EST

Letcher County officials are waiting on tests to determine if a jail inmate died from bacterial meningitis.

43 year old James Gregory Sexton was rushed to the Whitesburg ARH early Monday morning after falling ill.

He was pronounced dead at the hospital.

The Coroner tells WYMT Mountain News that the State Medical Examiner saw signs on Sexton's brain that pointed toward meningitis, but they're still waiting on confirmation.
Test results are expected to come back Wednesday.

[DB]

Re: Meningitis Outbreaks

http://www.2theadvocate.com/news/2313561.html

Meningitis vaccination plan targets 6,500
By RICHARD BURGESS
Acadiana bureau
Published: Feb 15, 2006
LAFAYETTE ? A meningitis vaccination campaign will expand to an estimated 6,500 University of Louisiana at Lafayette students in an effort to prevent the spread of the disease on campus, the state Office of Public Health announced Tuesday.

The university already has vaccinated more than 100 students considered at risk because of their close association with the victims in three meningitis cases reported last week.

Two students were hospitalized with the disease and a former student died.

Another ULL student died two weeks ago of a meningitis-related blood infection.

The announcement of the expanded vaccination effort, which begins today, comes after the state Office of Public Health reported another possible meningitis patient Monday who has no known connection to the university.

The first round of vaccinations targeted residents of the Voorhies building at ULL?s Legacy Park, where one student with meningitis lives, and members of fraternities and sororities. The fatal case of the disease involved a member of the Theta Xi fraternity.

The second round of vaccinations will focus on all campus residents and students age 20 and younger, said Dr. Tina Stefanski, Acadiana regional medical director for the state Office of Public Health.

?This is really a preventative measure,? state Epidemiologist Dr. Raoult Ratard said.

Ratard said the immediate concern was to vaccinate everyone who had a close association with the three people diagnosed with the disease, which can be spread only through such intimate contact as kissing or sharing food, drinks or cigarettes.

?First a small group and then the rest of the group,? Ratard said.

He said there are no plans to expand vaccinations further in the Lafayette area.

?We will see if there are any new cases,? Ratard said. ?We don?t think we need to expand the circle.?

Meningitis is a rare and sometimes fatal disease usually caused by a viral or bacterial infection.

An estimated 1,400 to 2,800 cases of bacterial meningitis occur each year in the United States, but the majority of those cases are isolated, according to the Centers for Disease Control and Prevention.

Between 1994 and 2002, health officials in the United States identified 76 meningitis outbreaks involving a total of 247 patients in 32 states, according to CDC.

Ratard said the last major outbreak in Louisiana was in 2001, when cases were reported across the state.

Two Tulane University students and two central Louisiana adolescents died that year of meningitis or a meningitis-related infection.
Adolescents and young adults are considered a high-risk group for contracting the disease, and the CDC has recommended vaccinations for all freshman university students who live in dormitories.

Some universities require the vaccination.

ULL spokeswoman Julie Simon-Dronet said the meningitis vaccination is not required of incoming ULL students, ?but it is strongly recommended? at orientation.

The free vaccinations for the target group at ULL will be offered from 10 a.m. to 5 p.m. today and from 8 a.m. to 5 p.m. Thursday at Guillory Hall, also known as the Cypress Lake Caf?. Students must present IDs.

Vaccinations are available to the general public at a cost through the public health center and private health-care providers, though supplies are limited.

?It?s always a good idea to get a vaccination,? Ratard said.

The vaccine is a preventative measure and does not treat meningitis.

Public health officials have said anyone who experiences symptoms of the disease should seek immediate medical attention.
The common early symptoms for meningitis are fever and severe sudden headache with neck stiffness and changes in one?s mental state.

For information from the regional public health clinic, call (337) 262-5311.

For general information on meningitis from ULL, visit http://www.safety.louisiana.edu

[Susan]

Re: Meningitis Outbreaks

Avon Student Contracts Bacterial Meningitis

School To Hold Meeting For Parents, Students Wednesday


POSTED: 4:15 pm EST February 15, 2006

<!--startindex-->AVON, Ohio -- A case of bacterial meningitis has been confirmed in an Avon East Elementary School student.
The child is currently in the intensive care unit at Rainbow Babies and Children's Hospital. The child hasn't been in school since Monday, and all families that could have been in contact with the child have been notified.
The school is holding a meeting Wednesday at 7 p.m. for the parents and students who have been in contact with the sick child. The health department will offer information about the illness and offer antibiotics.
Bacterial meningitis is more serious than viral meningitis. It is spread through direct contact with discharges from the nose or throat of an infected person. Common symptoms are high fever, headache, stiff neck, nausea and vomiting.

http://www.newsnet5.com/health/7088659/detail.html

[Susan]

Re: Meningitis Outbreaks

Bases in Germany on alert after meningitis deaths

By Kelly Kennedy
Times staff writer

American military communities in Germany are on high alert after a soldier and two civilians died from meningococcal diseases within a week of each other.
Because each person died from a different variant of meningococcal bacteria, each case has the potential to lead to an outbreak, said Col. Bruno Petruccelli, chief of the team that investigated the deaths. Meningococcal bacteria causes both meningitis and septicaemia.
?People should still be on alert and be educated, but not be scared,? Petrucelli said. ?Get seen if you don?t feel well and things aren?t getting better.?
Pvt. Dave Robbins, 20, a light vehicle mechanic with the 1st Infantry Division, died Jan. 28 of septicaemia at Wurzburg Hospital. Air Force civilian Lindsey Ferris, 26, died Jan. 19 of septicaemia after checking herself into the emergency room earlier that day. She worked at the Office of Special Investigations at Spangdahlem Air Base. Kimberly Wesson, the wife of a 1st Infantry Division soldier in Schweinfurt, died Feb. 3 of meningitis. She worked at the Schweinfurt Commissary.
No one else has been diagnosed with a meningococcal disease since the three died, Petrucelli said.
?They were of three different subtypes,? Petrucelli said. ?You would have expected a couple of other cases that were not fatal.? Symptoms include a rash, fever, headaches, stiff neck and nausea. It is spread through mucous secretions, so Petrucelli warned against sharing drinking glasses or cigarettes, and recommended frequent hand-washing. One out of 10 people carry meningococcal disease at any given time without having any symptoms, but some people?s immune systems cannot fight the bacteria.

http://www.navytimes.com/story.php?f...25-1537551.php

[DB]

Re: Meningitis Outbreaks

http://www.theadvertiser.com/apps/pb...EWS01/60216011

Two more meningitis cases reported in area
Marsha Sills
msills@theadvertiser.com


<TABLE cellSpacing=0 cellPadding=0 width="100%" border=0><TBODY><TR><TD vAlign=top><!-- ARTICLE BODYTEXT --><!--ARTICLE TEXT-->Two more cases of meningitis have been reported in the area today. One case in Crowley was reported today, but the type of meningitis is not contagious. Another case reported in Morgan City has been linked to the UL cases and reported on Wednesday., according to DHH officials this afternoon.

The Morgan City case involves a 22-year-old who was living in Lafayette was hospitalized with meningitis in Morgan City, said Kristen Meyer, DHH public information officer.

?The person is not a student at UL, but has the same kind of meningitis that the UL students had and we know that he had contact with some of the cases at UL,? Meyer said.

The other case involves a 44-year-old Crowley resident who has a different kind of meningitis not associated with the other cases, but rather caused by streptococcal bacteria, Meyer said.

?It?s not the contagious kind,? Meyer said.

The 22-year-old is originally from Morgan City and hospitalized there, said Dr. Takeisha Davis, regional medical director for Region III, which includes St. Mary Parish. That case was reported to public health officials on Wednesday.

?I can?t disclose any other information other than he is a 22-year-old male who is living in Lafayette and from the Morgan City area. He is currently hospitalized in Morgan City,? Davis said.

Davis was able to say that the man is not a UL student.
Earlier today, Dr. Raoult Ratard, state epidemiologist said the three cases linked to UL reported last week were of the serogroup C.

The case reported on Monday was also a serogroup C, said Dr. Tina Stefanski, regional public health director of Region IV, which includes Lafayette Parish. That patient has not been linked to campus, according to Stefanski.
</TD></TR></TBODY></TABLE>

[DB]

Re: Meningitis Outbreaks

http://english.eluniversal.com/2006/...6A673783.shtml

Another baby dies from meningitis in T?chira state

Marcos Jos? Rangel Pab?n, a five-month baby, died from meningitis in southwestern T?chira state, and he was the second casualty in the region in one week.
Carlos Rangel, the baby's father, said his son had a high fever and they took to the hospital last Saturday. He was transferred to another healthcare center in the capital of T?chira state, given his serious condition.
Doctors diagnosed the baby with meningitis. He had high fever and other complications and died Monday afternoon.

[DB]

Re: Meningitis Outbreaks

http://www.newsnet5.com/health/7111172/detail.html

Medicine Distributed After Girl, 8, Contracts Meningitis

Officials Say It Is An Isolated Case


POSTED: 6:51 am EST February 16, 2006

<!--startindex-->AVON, Ohio -- Concerned parents lined up Wednesday night to get antibiotics for their children and to find out more information about an 8-year-old girl who contracted bacterial meningitis, NewsChannel5 reported.

The second-grader is being closely monitored at Rainbow Babies and Children's Hospital. She went to school Monday and went home later that day. Within hours, she was hospitalized.

Parents in Avon said they are glad the district didn?t waste any time to inform them of the situation and answer questions.
The medication was given out as a precaution for kids who are friends and classmates of the 8-year-old girl.
So far, health officials said this is an isolated case and not an outbreak.

[eladdie]

Re: Meningitis Outbreaks

Pretty old geezers for meningitis, no?


Meningococcal vaccinations urged
Two Sikh temple-goers ill in Kamloops

PETTI FONG

VANCOUVER -- Interior Health Authority officials are urging 1,000 Sikh temple-goers to get vaccinated this weekend in Kamloops after two men were hospitalized with meningococcal infections.

The two men, ages 62 and 85, did not develop meningitis but remain in Royal Inland Hospital. The status of one of the patients is not known, while the other is in intensive care. Both are expected to recover.

Health officials are urging people who have recently visited the Cambridge Street temple to get vaccinated.

Anyone who develops fever, headache, nausea and vomiting should seek immediate medical attention, officials said. Symptoms would be worse than those connected with influenza and would progress quickly to a bad headache, stiff neck and a reddish-purple skin rash that resembles bruising.

The infection affects the blood and the lining of the brain and can cause serious, even life-threatening, illness.

The meningococcal bacteria typically spread through direct contact with droplets from the nose and saliva from the mouth through kissing or sharing food, drinks or cigarettes.

Dr. Digby Horne, medical health officer for the Thompson Cariboo Shuswap region of Interior Health, said there is no increased risk of exposure from handshaking or attending the same temple as the two infected men.

But the health authority recommends that all visitors to the temple since Feb. 1 be vaccinated at clinics set up at the facility this weekend.

The first case emerged last Saturday and the second case on Monday.

Dr. Horne said health officials received confirmation Wednesday that the two men had the same strain. They are being treated with antibiotics, he said.

People of all ages should be vaccinated, except babies under three months.

"We had two cases in a relatively circumscribed population that occurred in a short time," Dr. Horne said.

"That makes the rates high enough to consider immunization, and we decided it would be appropriate to offer a vaccine," he added.

He said it is possible for people to carry the bacteria without getting sick, but they can still pass the virus to others who may become ill.

The last time the health authority recommended such a large-scale immunization was in 1992, when a high school had a similar outbreak. http://www.theglobeandmail.com/servl...Story/National

[eladdie]

Re: Meningitis Outbreaks

Not sure if they are referring to the same case above

A parent volunteer at Langton Public School in Fenelon Falls is being hospitalized with meningitis.

Diane Dingman, director of communicable disease control for the Haliburton, Kawartha, Pine Ridge District Health Unit said yesterday afternoon a suspected case has been confirmed as meningitis.

"It is bacterial," she said, but it is not known what sub-category of bacterial meningitis it is.

This Week became aware of the problem when a concerned parent called our newsroom yesterday. Lisa Clutton's little boy was being read to by a parent volunteer at the school on Wednesday. That parent later arrived by ambulance at Ross Memorial Hospital. Later, Ms Clutton said she received two phone calls from the health unit, advising her how to proceed.

Yesterday, after she had obtained an antibiotic for her son, she went to the school to see how many of the children had been treated. "They had no clue who's had medicine and who has not," said Ms Clutton. "Absolutely no clue."

Her concern is that if children were exposed to the bacterial form of the potentially fatal infection and come back to school without treatment, they could infect others.

"I wanted to know if they've been treated like they were supposed to be. The school is totally ill-informed and don't seem to be concerned at all."

Catherine Shedden, communications officer with the Trillium Lakelands District School Board, said yesterday, "This really is a health unit thing.

"The chances of it spreading are very, very low," she said.

"When this sort of thing happens we hand it over to the health unit. It's their issue," said Ms Shedden.

A letter signed by principal Nancy Page went home with students on Wednesday. In part it reads: "This morning we were informed by the health unit that a parent who volunteers at Langton has been admitted to hospital with symptoms consistent with those of meningitis."

The Board was not obliged to send the letter, said Ms Shedden.

Ms Dingman said there are protocols for the health unit to follow when it is investigating a possible meningitis case. The first order of business, she said, is to confirm a diagnosis.

As a precaution, said Ms Dingman, some people at the school who were in close contact with the patient were notified, and treatment was recommended.

"We do what we did here when we're able to get in contact with those who've been in close contact" with the person, said Ms Dingman.

Ms Dingman said people should be practising good cough and hand hygiene, which can also protect against meningitis that is passed through the respiratory route.

"We feel we've contacted the people that need to be contacted," said Ms Dingman.

Julia Bryan, communications officer for Ross Memorial Hospital was not able to comment, other than to say, "we have had a patient present with what could be a reportable illness."

Meningitis is one of those illnesses.

Ms Bryan explained that a reportable illness could be a communicable disease, and the hospital is following up with the health unit.

She added that staff who have been in contact with this "have been followed up with by infection control."

Meningitis is one of the meningococcal diseases. It can cause infection of the covering of the brain (meningitis) or blood infection (septicemia). Children under the age of five are at highest risk of serious infection.

The bacteria are often found in the nose and throat of healthy people without causing illness. Even with treatment, meningcoccal infection can kill or permanently injure adults and children.

[DB]

Re: Meningitis Outbreaks

http://maroon.loyno.edu/media/paper5...-1629300.shtml

Student dies of meningitis in Cabra

By Chuck Alexander
Published: Friday, February 24, 2006

University officials are scrambling to put into effect preventative measures as Loyola students attempt to cope with the meningitis-related death of a classmate.

Trent Fucich, psychology junior, died in his Cabra Hall dorm room Tuesday. According to the Rev. Kevin Wildes, S.J., university president, medical examiners notified the university on Wednesday that the cause of death was meningitis.

While the precise type of meningitis, either viral or bacterial, is not yet known, the university is following the protocol concerning bacterial meningitis recommended by the Center for Disease Control and Prevention.

The university is encouraging any student who may have been in contact with Fucich to take a single dose of ciprofloxacin. According to Vicki McNeill, associate vice president of student affairs, Student Health Services will have 650 doses of Cipro as of press time. Wildes added that Loyola would acquire as many doses of Cipro as necessary.

Fucich was a member of Phi Kappa Psi fraternity where he served as social co-chair. He was in his third year of studying psychology and Japanese.

His fraternity brothers remember him as encompassing brotherhood, service, loyalty and compassion.

"He pretty much embodied the ideals of our fraternity," said Justin Breaux, political science senior.

Another friend remembers him as loyal, funny and always willing to help someone in need.

"If anything was wrong or if I had a test or was sad about anything, he'd just sit there and talk to me and make me feel better about life," said Ashley Genz-Foster, an English writing junior. "He was just a really friendly guy ... he'd always come up and give you a hug to say hi."

Genz remembers seeing Fucich the day before his death.

"I saw him Monday, and he told me he was really tired," she said. "He thought he had the flu or something."

On campus, friends erected a banner in memory of Fucich with the Phi Psi motto, "In Loving Memory: Trent Wise Fucich. Live ever, die never."

Breaux said the fraternity wanted to let other people know it cared about Fucich, and the banner was a way of remembering him.

Charles Alexander can be reached at cpalexan@loyno.edu. Naomi King can be reached at nsking@loyno.edu.

[DB]

Re: Meningitis Outbreaks

<TABLE cellSpacing=0 cellPadding=1 width="90%" border=0><TBODY><TR><TD class=article_content_top colSpan=2>http://www.expatica.com/source/site_...rmy+in+Germany

Meningococcal disease hits US Army in Germany

</TD></TR><TR><TD class=itemText colSpan=2>8 March 2006
BERLIN - An American teenager has been admitted to a German hospital with the symptoms of meningococcal disease, the fourth member of the expat American military community in Germany to contract the disease this year.
According to the US Army newspaper Stars and Stripes, the parents of 16-year-old Christopher Screen took him to a clinic on Saturday evening after he complained of feeling chilly and achy. He was admitted to a children's hospital in W?rzburg on Sunday after he began vomiting, a symptom of meningococcal disease.
Army health officials said on Tuesday the illness had been caught in time. Screen's mother said her son was in good condition. The boy's father Audwin Screen, a civilian who works for the US Army in Kitzingen, said it had been a close call, quoting the German doctor as saying "If you guys had waited another day, your son would be dead."
This is the fourth case of meningococcal disease to hit the US Army community in Germany this year. A Kitzingen soldier and an Air Force civilian from Spangdahlem Air Base died of septicaemia, one form of meningococcal disease, and the spouse of a Schweinfurt soldier died of meningitis, another form of the disease. All three cases happened between 28 January and 3 February.
The deaths have led the Army to send a medical team from the US to Germany to investigate. The team has concluded the deaths are not linked, and a final report is due at the end of this month.
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