Claim: Oregon 2nd-grader diagnosed with meningococcal meningitis.
Verdict: SUPPORTS

Retrieved passages:
title: Meningococcal disease
text: who wishes to reduce their risk of meningococcal disease may receive meningitis A,C,Y and W-135 vaccines and those older than 55 years of age. Under certain circumstances if unvaccinated health-care personnel cannot get vaccinated and who have intensive contact with oropharyngeal secretions of infected patients and who do not use proper precautions should receive anti-infective prophylaxis against meningococcal infection (i.e., 2-day regimen of oral rifampicin or a single dose of IM ceftriaxone or a single dose of oral ciprofloxacin). Because the risk of meningococcal disease is increased among USA's military recruits, all military recruits routinely receive primary immunization against the

title: NmVac4-A/C/Y/W-135
text: countries. Among those who survive the meningococcal disease, 10–20% experience neurological sequelae. JN-International Medical Corporation in Ivory Coast has provided over 5 million doses of serotypes A & C vaccine on long term credit to the Ministry of Health of Niger, Burkina Faso, Benin and Ivory Coast during meningitis disease outbreak seasons since the year 2006. Children 2–10 years of age who are at high risk for meningococcal disease such as certain chronic medical conditions and travel to or reside in countries with hyperendemic or epidemic meningococcal disease should receive primary immunization. Although safety and efficacy of the vaccine have

title: Aseptic meningitis
text: meningeal inflammation can be noticed along with the possibility of hepatic necrosis and myocarditis. In serious cases, a multiple organ failure can also signal aseptic meningitis and oftentimes, in babies, seizures and focal neurological deficits can be early symptoms of aseptic meningitis. In fact, in newborns, the mortality rate is 70%. The next set of age group, like children, have similar but varying symptoms of sore throat, rashes, and diarrhea. In adults, symptoms and the harshness of them tend to be less in duration. Additionally, the probability of developing aseptic meningitis increases when patients have a case of mumps or

title: NmVac4-A/C/Y/W-135
text: is recommended, Any individual 11–55 years of age who wishes to reduce their risk of meningococcal disease may receive NMVAC-4 and those older than 55 years of age. Under certain circumstances if unvaccinated health-care personnel cannot get vaccinated and who have intensive contact with oropharyngeal secretions of infected patients and who do not use proper precautions should receive anti-infective prophylaxis against meningococcal infection (i.e., 2-day regimen of oral rifampin or a single dose of IM ceftriaxone or a single dose of oral ciprofloxacin). Because the risk of meningococcal disease is increased among military recruits, all military recruits routinely receive primary

title: Meningococcal disease
text: primary immunization. Although safety and efficacy of the vaccine have not been established in children younger than 2 years of age and under outbreak control, the unconjugated vaccine can be considered. Primary immunization against meningococcal disease with meningitis A, C, Y and W-135 vaccines is recommended for all young adolescents at 11–12 years of age and all unvaccinated older adolescents at 15 years of age. Although conjugate vaccines are the preferred meningococcal vaccine in adolescents 11 years of age or older, polysaccharide vaccines are an acceptable alternative if the conjugated vaccine is unavailable. Primary immunization with meningitis A, C, Y

title: Childhood immunizations in the United States
text: someone who has the disease are at increased risk of infection. In the case of infection, these people are contacted to receive prophylaxis which is when a person is treated with antibiotics to prevent infection from the disease. Symptoms appear quickly over the course of several days and develop within 3–7 days after exposure. The symptoms of meningococcal disease are In newborns and infants classic symptoms may be absent or difficult to notice. They may appear slow or inactive, irritable, vomiting or feeding poorly. Meningococcal Septicemis (aka. Meningococcemia) is a bloodstream infection caused by the Neisseria meningitidis bacteria. This is

title: Meningococcal disease
text: puncture, as delay in treatment worsens the prognosis. Symptoms of meningococcemia are, at least initially, similar to those of influenza. Typically, the first symptoms include fever, nausea, myalgia, headache, arthralgia, chills, diarrhea, stiff neck, and malaise. Later symptoms include septic shock, purpura, hypotension, cyanosis, petechiae, seizures, anxiety, and multiple organ dysfunction syndrome. Acute respiratory distress syndrome and altered mental status may also occur. The petichial rash appear with the 'star-like' shape. Meningococcal sepsis has a greater mortality rate than meningococcal meningitis, but the risk of neurologic sequelae is much lower. The most important form of prevention is a vaccine against

title: Meningitis
text: early stage of the illness. These may require specific treatment, and sometimes indicate severe illness or worse prognosis. The infection may trigger sepsis, a systemic inflammatory response syndrome of falling blood pressure, fast heart rate, high or abnormally low temperature, and rapid breathing. Very low blood pressure may occur at an early stage, especially but not exclusively in meningococcal meningitis; this may lead to insufficient blood supply to other organs. Disseminated intravascular coagulation, the excessive activation of blood clotting, may obstruct blood flow to organs and paradoxically increase the bleeding risk. Gangrene of limbs can occur in meningococcal disease. Severe

title: Waterhouse–Friderichsen syndrome
text: the most severe form of meningococcal sepsis. The onset of the illness is nonspecific with fever, rigors, vomiting, and headache. Soon a rash appears; first macular, not much different from the rose spots of typhoid, and rapidly becoming petechial and purpuric with a dusky gray color. Low blood pressure (hypotension) develops and rapidly leads to septic shock. The cyanosis of extremities can be extreme and the patient is very prostrated or comatose. In this form of meningococcal disease, meningitis generally does not occur. Low levels of blood glucose and sodium, high levels of potassium in the blood, and the ACTH

title: Meningococcal disease
text: close contacts of individuals with invasive disease. Meningitis A,C,Y and W-135 vaccines rarely may be used as an adjunct to chemoprophylaxis,1 but only in situations where there is an ongoing risk of exposure (e.g., when cluster cases or outbreaks occur) and when a serogroup contained in the vaccine is involved. It is important that clinicians promptly report all cases of suspected or confirmed meningococcal disease to local public health authorities and that the serogroup of the meningococcal strain involved be identified. The effectiveness of mass vaccination programs depends on early and accurate recognition of outbreaks. When a suspected outbreak of

title: NmVac4-A/C/Y/W-135
text: or C) occur regularly during the dry season (i.e., December through June) in that portion of sub-Saharan Africa known as the " meningitis belt," which extends from Mali to Ethiopia. In addition, major epidemics occur every 8–12 years. Travelers to these high-risk areas may be at risk of meningococcal disease and many of these countries do not have established means for surveillance and timely reporting of epidemics HIV-infected individuals are likely to be at increased risk for meningococcal disease; HIV-infected individuals who wish to reduce their risk of meningococcal disease may receive primary immunization against meningococcal disease. Although efficacy of

title: Meningococcal disease
text: high prevalence of respiratory tract infections, which leave the body more susceptible to infection, encouraging the spread of meningitis. IRIN Africa news has been providing the number of deaths for each country since 1995, and a mass vaccination campaign following a community outbreak of meningococcal disease in Florida was done by the CDC. From the Greek "meninx" (membrane) + "kokkos" (berry), meningococcal disease was first described by Gaspard Vieusseux during an outbreak in Geneva in 1805. In 1884, Italian pathologists Ettore Marchiafava and Angelo Celli described intracellular micrococci in cerebrospinal fluid, and in 1887, Anton Wiechselbaum identified the meningococcus (designated

title: Lymphocytic choriomeningitis
text: and cough, as well as joint, chest, and parotid pain. The onset of the second phase occurs several days after recovery, and consists of symptoms of meningitis or encephalitis. Pathological findings during the first stage consist of leukopenia and thrombocytopenia. During the second phase, typical findings include elevated protein levels, increased leukocyte count, or a decrease in glucose levels of the cerebrospinal fluid). Occasionally, a patient improves for a few days, then relapses with aseptic meningitis, or very rarely, meningoencephalitis. Patients with meningitis may have a stiff neck, fever, headache, myalgia, nausea and malaise. In some occasions, meningitis occurs without

title: Neisseria meningitidis
text: 10% of cases. Symptoms of meningococcal meningitis are easily confused with those caused by other bacteria, such as "Haemophilus influenzae" and "Streptococcus pneumoniae". Suspicion of meningitis is a medical emergency and immediate medical assessment is recommended. Current guidance in the United Kingdom is that if a case of meningococcal meningitis or septicaemia (infection of the blood) is suspected intravenous antibiotics should be given and the ill person admitted to the hospital. This means that laboratory tests may be less likely to confirm the presence of "Neisseria meningitidis" as the antibiotics will dramatically lower the number of bacteria in the body.

title: Meningococcal disease
text: of bacterial meningitis. Meningitis is a disease caused by inflammation and irritation of the meninges, the membranes surrounding the brain and spinal cord. In meningococcal meningitis this is caused by the bacteria invading the cerebrospinal fluid and circulating through the central nervous system. Sub-Saharan Africa, the Americas, Western Europe, the UK, and Ireland still face many challenges combating this disease. As with any gram-negative bacterium, "N. meningitidis" can infect a variety of sites. Meningococcal pneumonia can appear during influenza pandemics and in military camps. This is a multilobar, rapidly evolving pneumonia, sometimes associated with septic shock. With prompt treatment, the

title: Aseptic meningitis
text: also have the option of performing a computed tomographic (CT) scan or magnetic resonance imaging (MRI), these tests help observe calcifications or abscesses. If CSF levels are irregular among individuals, they will undergo hospitalization where they receive antiviral therapy. If aseptic meningitis was caused by herpes simplex virus (HSV), the individual will receive acyclovir, an antiviral drug. If infants are diagnosed, medical professionals will order regular check-ins for hearing and learning disabilities. Aseptic meningitis was first described by Wallgren in 1925. Aseptic meningitis cases have varied historically. Aseptic meningitis caused by mumps has declined in the United States due to

title: Meningococcal disease
text: prognosis is excellent. Another alternative is dexamethasone with vancomycin and meropenem. Pericarditis can appear, either as a septic pericarditis with grave prognosis or as a reactive pericarditis in the wake of meningitis or septicaemia. Meningococcal disease causes life-threatening meningitis and sepsis conditions. In the case of meningitis, bacteria attack the lining between the brain and skull called the meninges. Infected fluid from the meninges then passes into the spinal cord, causing symptoms including stiff neck, fever and rashes. The meninges (and sometimes the brain itself) begin to swell, which affects the central nervous system. Even with antibiotics, approximately 1 in

title: Neisseria meningitidis
text: given to 215 million people across Benin, Cameroon, Chad, Ivory Coast, Ethiopia, Ghana, Mali, Niger, Mauritania, Nigeria, Senegal, Sudan, Togo and Gambia. The vaccination campaign has resulted in near-elimination of serogroup A meningitis from the participating countries. Persons with confirmed "N. meningitidis" infection should be hospitalized immediately for treatment with antibiotics. Because meningococcal disease can disseminate very rapidly, a single dose of intramuscular antibiotic is often given at the earliest possible opportunity, even before hospitalization, if disease symptoms look suspicious enough. Third-generation cephalosporin antibiotics (i.e. cefotaxime, ceftriaxone) should be used to treat a suspected or culture-proven meningococcal infection before antibiotic

title: Meningitis
text: fluid, the severity of the generalized illness, a decreased level of consciousness or an abnormally low count of white blood cells in the CSF. Meningitis caused by "H. influenzae" and meningococci has a better prognosis than cases caused by group B streptococci, coliforms and "S. pneumonia". In adults, too, meningococcal meningitis has a lower mortality (3–7%) than pneumococcal disease. In children there are several potential disabilities which may result from damage to the nervous system, including sensorineural hearing loss, epilepsy, learning and behavioral difficulties, as well as decreased intelligence. These occur in about 15% of survivors. Some of the hearing

title: Meningococcal disease
text: meningococcal disease occurs, public health authorities will then determine whether mass vaccinations (with or without mass chemoprophylaxis) is indicated and delineate the target population to be vaccinated based on risk assessment. When meningococcal disease is suspected, treatment must be started "immediately" and should not be delayed while waiting for investigations. Treatment in primary care usually involves prompt intramuscular administration of benzylpenicillin, and then an urgent transfer to hospital (hopefully, an academic level I medical center, or at least a hospital with round the clock neurological care, ideally with neurological intensive and critical care units) for further care. Once in the