Not meningo, but ‘tongue pierce’ seen in Laguna teen’s death

SAN PEDRO CITY – The 13-year-old boy who died two weeks ago in Sta. Rosa City in Laguna province tested negative for Meningococcemia, city government and health officials said.

In a public advisory issued Thursday, the city government said tests conducted by the Research Institute for Tropical Medicine showed that the Grade 8 pupil of the Balibago National High School tested negative for Meningococcemia, a contagious and often fatal disease.

The teen’s blood and cerebrospinal fluid samples were collected for testing after the Sta. Rosa Community Hospital, where he was declared dead on arrival on September 22, described the death as a “highly suspected” case of Meningococcemia.

“The child’s cause of death was not Meningococcemia,” the city government’s advisory read.

“While the cause of death could no longer be determined, there were suppositions, according to the child’s relatives, that he died due to an infection caused by tongue piercing,” the statement added.

The health department and city officials earlier disinfected the school and administered prophylaxis to the family and hospital personnel who had close contact with the patient, amid panic among
residents./lb