Posted on Thursday, 04.23.09
BY JOHN DORSCHNER
jdorschner@MiamiHerald.com
The outbreak of the W135 form of meningitis that has killed four people in South Florida is a ''unique situation,'' an expert at the U.S. Centers for Disease Control and Prevention said Thursday morning.
''We've never had a transmission like this in the United States,'' said Amanda Cohn, a physician who specializes in studying meningitis.
The CDC has seen individual cases in the United States of the deadly, fast-moving strain, and there have been outbreaks in other parts of the world, including one that hit Muslims on the pilgrimage to Mecca and in the African country of Burkina Faso, Cohn said.
But the CDC has never seen a case in which four people have died and eight others made ill during a six-month period in one area, as has happened in South Florida.
They're particularly puzzled because there are no obvious connections between the patients. ''This is very interesting,'' said Cohn, an Atlanta-based researcher. ``We don't know what's happening.''
The strain can kill within hours, and anyone experiencing severe headache, fever, nausea, vomiting and stiff neck should see a doctor immediately, health officials warned.
''It's a very scary disease,'' when someone gets it, said Cohn, but ``people don't need to be scared. . . . It's not incredibly infectious. You're not going to see hundreds and hundreds of cases.''
W135 is one of the strains covered by the meningitis vaccine, but Cohn said she saw no need for the general population to rush to get a shot. If there are certain subgroups that are at high risk and need to be vaccinated, the local health departments would make that announcement.
Many people may carry one of 13 strains of meningitis within them but not get sick.
''We don't understand why some people develop the disease,'' Cohn said. People with colds or the flu might be more susceptible, but the connections are still unclear.
Fifteen or 20 percent of those who get the W135 strain will die, Cohn said. ``That's high. This is a very serious disease.''
Miami-Dade health officials revealed the W135 problem at a hastily called news conference Wednesday. They said the strain could be curable with antibiotics -- but only if patients seek treatment quickly.
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Meningitis: Know the symptoms
Q. How serious is it?
A. The strain county officials are warning about -- W135 -- is very serious. It can kill within hours. So health officials urge those with symptoms to see their doctors immediately -- going to emergency rooms if they can't contact their own doctors.
Q. What are the symptoms?
A. Severe headache, nausea, vomiting, coughing, difficulty looking into bright lights, stiff neck.
Q. Is it treatable?
A. If caught quickly, it can be stopped with antibiotics.
Q. Has it spread to public or private schools?
A. No, say health officials.
Q. How is it spread?
A. Coughing, kissing, sharing drinking utensils, touching hard surfaces previously touched by someone who is infected. Dr. Gordon Dickinson, chief of infectious diseases at the University of Miami School of Medicine, says the strain can live up to two days on a hard surface.
Q. How contagious is it?
A. It's contagious but less so than, say, the flu. Some people can have it without becoming ill.
Q. How can I keep from getting meningitis?
A. Avoid those with symptoms, wash your hands frequently, clean hard surfaces around those who are infected.
Q. What number should I call for information?
A. The Miami-Dade Health Department phone number is 305-324-2400. After business hours, the line is answered by poison control specialists. The Broward County Health Department's phone number is 954-467-4700. The Palm Beach County Health Department can be reached at 561-840-4500.
hat-tip Shiloh
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