OSU student diagnosed with meningitis

Wednesday, March 22, 2006

STILLWATER, OK -- Officials from the Oklahoma State Department of Health said today that a 21-year-old Oklahoma State University female student has been diagnosed with meningitis. 

The Oklahoma State Department of Health, Payne County Health Department and Oklahoma State University are working to identify all persons at risk and will recommend post-exposure antibiotics.  A number of the student’s close friends have been contacted and treated.  The student traveled out of the country for spring break.

“The general public is not at risk,” said Dr. Brett Cauthen, Epidemiologist for the Oklahoma State Department of Health.  “Only persons who have had close, personal contact to a person with a meningococcal infection have a slightly increased risk of developing the disease.   Such personal contact would be household contact such as sharing eating or drinking utensils, or being physically intimate with a person with meningococcal infection.”

Meningitis is caused by the bacteria Neisseria meningitidis.  The symptoms may appear two to ten days after infection, but usually appear within three to four days.  People that are ill with meningitis will have fever, intense headache, nausea, vomiting, and a stiff neck.  It is important to seek care from a physician as soon as possible if these symptoms appear.

The Payne County Health Department and OSU officials are actively investigating to determine the close contacts in this case and will be interacting with those individuals to recommend antibiotics as a preventive measure.  Ciprofloxacin or rifampin are the antibiotics generally prescribed for those with close contact.  It eliminates the bacteria from the nose and throat of persons carrying it, which may help protect contacts from developing a meningococcal infection. 

Casual contacts, such as students in a school classroom or co-workers at a workplace, are not at increased risk of getting the disease and therefore do not need treatment with the antibiotic.

Many healthy people carry meningococcal bacteria in their nose and throat without any symptoms.  Usually, the bacteria stay in the nose and throat for a few days and will then disappear.  The bacteria are spread from person-to-person by direct contact with secretions from the nose and throat.  The reason that the organism disappears in some people and produces illness in others is not clearly understood but is probably related to individual susceptibility.

OSU officials are meeting with student groups to address questions and concerns.  Students who have questions or concerns may contact 405-744-2159.  In addition, a fact sheet on meningococcal disease and other information are available at news/meningitis.htm.  Those with immediate health concerns should visit a local emergency room, or contact their family physician or University Health Services.   

Additional information is available by contacting the Payne County Health Department at (405) 372-8200, or the Epidemiologist-on-call at the Oklahoma State Department of Health Communicable Disease Division at (405) 271-4060.