No meningococcemia outbreak in Pasay City

MANILA, Philippines — Following the admission of a young boy with meningococcemia symptoms on Sunday afternoon, an official of a Pasay hospital has clarified that there was no outbreak of the disease in the city.

“This is an isolated case. No other similar cases have been recorded,”Dr. Mary Joy Salinas-Balanay, head of the Pasay City General Hospital (PCGH) emergency room, said in a statement on Monday.

According to her, the patient had been transferred to San Lazaro Hospital in Manila for more laboratory tests.

The PCGH emergency ward, on the other hand, underwent a thorough cleaning and reopened on Sunday night.

According to Balanay, they were monitoring all the people who had close contact with the patient for any signs and symptoms of meningococcemia.

The patient’s house was also decontaminated as a safety precaution while PCGH personnel, other patients and their family members were given antibiotics.Balanay said that meningococcemia cases were rare although these could prove fatal.

Mode of transmission

The disease is spread through close contact with an infected person, including coughing, kissing, sharing of utensils or from prolonged exposure.

“This disease is not as contagious as the common cold or flu as the bacteria causing the disease cannot survive outside of the human host,” Balanay said.

Its symptoms include cough, headache and sore throat, followed by upper respiratory symptoms, fever, chills, malaise, nausea, vomiting and skin rashes.

It can quickly progress and manifest with lethargy, difficulty of breathing and skin lesions. In 15 percent of the cases, death can occur within a few hours.

Last month, a 54-year-old man from Bulacan province died a week after exhibiting symptoms of meningococcemia.

But officials of the Bulacan Provincial Health Office and San Lazaro Hospital, where he was transferred, confirmed he tested negative for the disease.