A Christchurch high school student has been admitted to hospital with meningococcal meningitis after attending a rugby tournament in Dunedin.
In a letter to parents, Shirley Boys’ High School headmaster Tim Grocott said the student was now well, “alert, moving and talking” after being taken to hospital on Tuesday.
“Our thoughts are with the student and his family as he recovers from the infection,” he said.
“The student had been in Dunedin at a school rugby tournament and had stayed and travelled with other students from Shirley Boys’ High School. We have alerted the tournament organisers and the accommodation.
“Yesterday afternoon we held a meeting for the parents of the close contacts where the public health service provided advice and met with each parent to provide an antibiotic which is designed to minimise the potential spread of the infection.
“The risk of someone else who attends Shirley Boys’ High School developing the disease is very small, especially as the student’s symptoms only emerged this week and the student has not attended school since Friday 22 August.”
National Public Health Service medical officer of health Dr Annabel Begg said Canterbury officials had been notified of the case.
“All of the close contacts have been identified and been offered antibiotics. There is very little risk of meningococcal disease to others, as the infection is only passed on when people have close or prolonged contact,” she said in a statement.
“The National Public Health Service has worked closely with the school and determined there was also no risk of meningococcal disease infection for other students or staff.”
Meningococcal disease is caused by a bacterial infection and can lead to death or permanent disability, such as deafness.
Begg said there were a number of strains of meningococcus bacteria, although the most common in New Zealand was meningococcal B.
The meningococcal B vaccine is free for all babies, children under the age of five and young people aged 13 to 25 in their first year of certain close-living situations.
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