Kent meningits cases rise to 27, student vaccinations continue
March 19 (UPI) — The number of cases of meningitis in Kent has risen to 27, the United Kingdom Health Security Agency reported.
There are 15 confirmed cases, and 12 suspected cases, meaning health professionals suspect the illness based on symptoms.
Two people have died since the outbreak began: One high school student and a college student at the University of Kent.
“What is particularly remarkable about this case, and unexpected about this case, is the large number of cases all originating from what seems to be a single event,” Robin May, chief scientific officer at the UKHSA, told The Guardian.
Officials believe some students picked up the disease at Club Chemistry, a nightclub in Canterbury.
“There are two possible reasons for that,” May said. “One is that there might be something about the kind of behaviors that individual people are doing. The other possibility is the bacteria itself may have evolved to be better at transmitting.”
Students at the university are being given preventive antibiotics and vaccines effective against the strain of meningitis B. Officials have given 600 vaccines and 6,500 doses of antibiotics.
Canterbury Christ Church University in Kent confirmed that a student had meningitis, and four schools have seen confirmed cases.
The UKHSA said there was one student with meningitis at a college in London whose case was linked to the Kent outbreak.
Meningitis is an infection of the protective lining of the brain and spinal cord. It can be caused by bacteria or viruses. Meningitis B is caused by the Neisseria meningitidis bacteria, which is also called meningococcus.
Doctors in England were told on Wednesday to prescribe antibiotics to anyone who was at Club Chemistry between March 5 and 7 and to University of Kent students who had left the campus.
“Two doses of the MenB vaccine helps protect individuals against meningococcal B disease,” but not other strains of meningitis, said Trish Mannes, UKHSA regional deputy director for the south east, in a statement. “It is therefore still hugely important that people are aware of the signs and symptoms of invasive meningococcal disease and that they seek immediate medical attention if they or anyone they know develops these signs and symptoms.”
The UKHSA said the National Health Service was well stocked with vaccines after pharmacies reported they were struggling to get them.
Health Secretary Wes Streeting told the BBC there is no reason for people to buy it privately.
“We make it available through the NHS to those groups at risk based on independent scientific advice,” he said.
“In recent days, here in Canterbury we’ve made it more widely available than we normally would to targeted groups of students, club-goers, sixth-formers [older teens] where we think there is a higher risk. We’re doing this as a precaution.”
