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Source: http://www.dailyfreeman.com/articles...e806388443.txt
5-year-old girl dies from meningitis
Published: Sunday, November 22, 2009
By KYLE WIND
Freeman staff
MARBLETOWN ? A Marbletown Elementary School kindergartner died Friday, apparently from a bacterial ? and non-contagious ? form of meningitis, according to Ulster County?s new public health director.
Dr. La Mar Hasbrouck said the Health Department is monitoring the situation but believes no preventive treatments are required for people who came in contact with the child, identified by a funeral home on Saturday as 5-year-old Grace L. Imperato of Stone Ridge.
In a letter to Marbletown Elementary School parents, Principal William Cafiero wrote the Rondout Valley School District was advised that, ?given the minimal risk involved, schools should not be closed and children do not need to be kept home.?
He also said the ?entire Rondout Valley Community is saddened? by the child?s death and that ?our thoughts and condolences go out to the family.?
Hasbrouck, who has been the county?s public health director for less than a week, said lab tests indicated the student who died did not suffer from the H1N1 influenza virus, commonly called swine flu.
Dr. Marc Tack, an infectious disease specialist and a member of the Kingston Board of Education, said contracting the form of meningitis suspected in the Marbletown case is ?like getting struck by lightning.?
Tack said the type of meningitis that health officials believe afflicted the child is rare and occurs when bacteria from common infections like strep throat, pneumonia and bronchitis ?get out of the normal places? and move into the bloodstream and brain.
Meningitis is an inflammation of the membranes that cover the brain and spinal cord and often is referred to as ?spinal meningitis.?
Dr. Peter O?Connor, a physician at Pine Street Pediatric Associates in Kingston, noted that many of the initial symptoms of meningitis do not seem serious. But Tack noted that once the bacteria gets to the brain, ?it becomes an emergency? and requires antibiotics in ?minutes to hours.?
?It really is bad luck,? Tack said, adding that contracting the form of meningitis that claimed the life of the Marbletown child is random and not related to any underlying weaknesses in the immune system. ?As a parent, you ask yourself why, and in this case, there are no answers.?
?It?s devastating,? O?Connor said, adding that he received phone calls from a number of worried parents Friday afternoon. He agreed, though, that this case is not cause for panic.
Nereida Veytia, a registered nurse and director of patient services for the county Health Department, said parents still should watch their children for the symptoms of meningitis. Common symptoms in patients over the age of 2 include a high fever, headache and stiff neck.
Other symptoms include nausea, vomiting, discomfort looking into bright lights, confusion, sleepiness and difficulty eating and sleeping.
School and health officials said the symptoms can develop in as little as a few hours or as long as one or two days.
In newborns and infants, some of the symptoms can be difficult to detect, but babies with meningitis may appear slow or inactive, be irritable, feed poorly and vomit, according to Cafiero?s letter to parents.
Meningitis patients of any age also may suffer seizures.
Rondout Valley school district Superintendent Rosario Agostaro described Friday as ?a rather tense and difficult day? and said counselors were available to students and staff members and will be in the school again next week.
Agostaro said that, over the weekend, Cafiero will contact the parents of the pupils in the child?s class so they ?can begin to try to explain the the situation? to their youngsters.
Though the child who died apparently was not contagious, Cafiero?s letter to parents stressed that good hygiene can reduce the risk of spreading diseases and it listed such guidelines as coughing into the upper arm; avoiding kissing and sharing drinks, utensils, lipstick or similar items with sick people or when sick; and washing hands thoroughly and often, especially after coughing, sneezing, blowing your nose, using the toilet and changing diapers.
The letter also recommended cleaning surfaces like handles, doorknobs or TV remote controls with soap and water and then disinfecting them with a dilute solution of chlorine-containing bleach that can be made by mixing a gallon of water with a quarter-cup of bleach.
5-year-old girl dies from meningitis
Published: Sunday, November 22, 2009
By KYLE WIND
Freeman staff
MARBLETOWN ? A Marbletown Elementary School kindergartner died Friday, apparently from a bacterial ? and non-contagious ? form of meningitis, according to Ulster County?s new public health director.
Dr. La Mar Hasbrouck said the Health Department is monitoring the situation but believes no preventive treatments are required for people who came in contact with the child, identified by a funeral home on Saturday as 5-year-old Grace L. Imperato of Stone Ridge.
In a letter to Marbletown Elementary School parents, Principal William Cafiero wrote the Rondout Valley School District was advised that, ?given the minimal risk involved, schools should not be closed and children do not need to be kept home.?
He also said the ?entire Rondout Valley Community is saddened? by the child?s death and that ?our thoughts and condolences go out to the family.?
Hasbrouck, who has been the county?s public health director for less than a week, said lab tests indicated the student who died did not suffer from the H1N1 influenza virus, commonly called swine flu.
Dr. Marc Tack, an infectious disease specialist and a member of the Kingston Board of Education, said contracting the form of meningitis suspected in the Marbletown case is ?like getting struck by lightning.?
Tack said the type of meningitis that health officials believe afflicted the child is rare and occurs when bacteria from common infections like strep throat, pneumonia and bronchitis ?get out of the normal places? and move into the bloodstream and brain.
Meningitis is an inflammation of the membranes that cover the brain and spinal cord and often is referred to as ?spinal meningitis.?
Dr. Peter O?Connor, a physician at Pine Street Pediatric Associates in Kingston, noted that many of the initial symptoms of meningitis do not seem serious. But Tack noted that once the bacteria gets to the brain, ?it becomes an emergency? and requires antibiotics in ?minutes to hours.?
?It really is bad luck,? Tack said, adding that contracting the form of meningitis that claimed the life of the Marbletown child is random and not related to any underlying weaknesses in the immune system. ?As a parent, you ask yourself why, and in this case, there are no answers.?
?It?s devastating,? O?Connor said, adding that he received phone calls from a number of worried parents Friday afternoon. He agreed, though, that this case is not cause for panic.
Nereida Veytia, a registered nurse and director of patient services for the county Health Department, said parents still should watch their children for the symptoms of meningitis. Common symptoms in patients over the age of 2 include a high fever, headache and stiff neck.
Other symptoms include nausea, vomiting, discomfort looking into bright lights, confusion, sleepiness and difficulty eating and sleeping.
School and health officials said the symptoms can develop in as little as a few hours or as long as one or two days.
In newborns and infants, some of the symptoms can be difficult to detect, but babies with meningitis may appear slow or inactive, be irritable, feed poorly and vomit, according to Cafiero?s letter to parents.
Meningitis patients of any age also may suffer seizures.
Rondout Valley school district Superintendent Rosario Agostaro described Friday as ?a rather tense and difficult day? and said counselors were available to students and staff members and will be in the school again next week.
Agostaro said that, over the weekend, Cafiero will contact the parents of the pupils in the child?s class so they ?can begin to try to explain the the situation? to their youngsters.
Though the child who died apparently was not contagious, Cafiero?s letter to parents stressed that good hygiene can reduce the risk of spreading diseases and it listed such guidelines as coughing into the upper arm; avoiding kissing and sharing drinks, utensils, lipstick or similar items with sick people or when sick; and washing hands thoroughly and often, especially after coughing, sneezing, blowing your nose, using the toilet and changing diapers.
The letter also recommended cleaning surfaces like handles, doorknobs or TV remote controls with soap and water and then disinfecting them with a dilute solution of chlorine-containing bleach that can be made by mixing a gallon of water with a quarter-cup of bleach.