ABINGDON, Va. – A Washington County school student has been diagnosed with meningitis and methicillin-resistant staphylococcus aureus or MRSA, said Superintendent Alan Lee.
According to a school system e-mail, the child’s diagnosis has been reported to the Virginia Department of Health and does not require preventive medical treatment for those who have come in close contact with the child.
“We’re fortunate that this type of meningitis doesn’t appear to be one that’s going to be spread person to person,” said Lee.
“If it were the severe form, we would be having to make sure that we vaccinated [those who came in close contact with the child].”
Lee said the student has an internal MRSA infection that is not easily spread, and the variety of meningitis is not the most severe.
He would not release the name of the school the child attends but did say a room there was disinfected as a precaution.
“As soon as I tell you that [the name of the school], the parents at other schools are going to relax,” Lee said. “I don’t want them to relax.”
He said there’s no way of knowing where the child got the infection. He said he could not discuss the student’s condition.
The main message to parents, he said, is that it’s critical to make sure kids wash their hands, particularly before they eat, and don’t share personal items like towels, razors and clothing.
According to the e-mail, common symptoms of meningitis, an infection of tissues that cover the brain and spinal cord, include fever and chills, severe headache, stiff neck, nausea and vomiting, sensitivity to bright light and sometimes a rash.
Anyone who develops the symptoms is advised to contact a physician, and anyone with questions on the illness can contact the Washington County Health Department at (276) 676-5604 or (276) 645-0947.
“The bacteria and viruses that do this, they’re everyday,” Lee said. “The bacteria that’s MRSA, it’s common. It’s probably in your house and my house, too.”
dmccown@bristolnews.com | (276) 791-0701
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