Meningitis scares Rhode Island Children

The scare of Meningitis forced the closing of several schools in the Rhode Island. A 21-year old, Danielle Thompson, a student of the University of New Hampshire, died of meningitis (bacterial) last Wednesday.

According to the authorities, antibiotics should be administered to eighty one people, who had come in contact with the student; while it is 55 people in Maine and Massachusetts, it is 29 people in New Hampshire.

The officials from CDC (Centers for Disease Control and Prevention) said that three public school children have most likely developed meningitis. Moreover, a second grader from Warwick died of encephalitis - a result of 'walking pneumonia' or Mycoplasma, which has become common among the children of Rhode Island, according to the Public Health Department.

Also, the schools in Warwick, West Warwick and Coventry were closed and 20000 children were kept away from them. In spite of no cases detected in eight schools of The Roman Catholic Diocese of Providence, they were closed as a precautionary measure.

"Part of the investigation is to begin to understand, 'Did we have higher rates of mycoplasma infection and complications from that, or was this something different out there?"' Dr. David Gifford, the director of the state health department, and Cynthia Whitney, chief of the respiratory diseases branch at the CDC said Friday afternoon.

"I think the focus will continue to be making sure that there are no new cases," said Cynthia. She also said that if more bacteria are available to work with, it would be easier to determine if there is anything unique about it.

State officials have decided to reopen the schools on Monday and provide alcohol-based hand sanitizers to classrooms across the schools of Rhode Island as there were no new cases on Meningitis and Encephalitis reported.

Additionally, an executive order to all the schools was signed by Gov. Don Carcieri, according to which, they should have alcohol-based hand washing stations, and post proper hand washing procedures along with the information about containing and curbing pneumonia and other small illnesses.

Meningitis is an infection of the fluid in the spinal cord and the fluid that surrounds the brain. It is usually caused by an infection with a virus or a bacterium. Encephalitis is an inflammation of the brain. Mycoplasma can occasionally cause such neurological complications.

The symptoms of meningitis are high fever, headache, nausea, vomiting, stiff neck, aversion to bright lights, seizures etc. It is a waterborne disease and thus can spread by sharing water, food with the affected person.