<p>Okay, a very big part of me hesitates with the following because it is so easy to start rumors and spread panic. However, here goes…</p>
<p>Sally :
</p>
<p>You mention the word ‘house’, are you referring to a sorority? </p>
<p>Here is why I’m asking…</p>
<p>A very good friend of mine who also has a student at UCSB was able to get through to a live person at SB health services. She was trying to find out where the affected students lived. She has a a family member undergoing chemo and another family member with a very young child. Both will be in the house for Thanksgiving. During the course of her conversation with the health rep., she was asked if her students (she tried to get specific info for me also) lives in sorority or fraternity housing. She got the strong feeling that the issue was concentrated in that type of living situation. In a way it makes sense since it is much more intimate than regular dorms when it comes to sharing kitchen, bath, general living items.</p>
<p>Although the representative refused to identify where the affected students lived, they were willing to share that the two particular dorms where our students reside were NOT involved. </p>
<p>Also, the antibiotics have now been given to 500 students and as per rep, 5 additional students were undergoing blood tests. Supposedly the results (which strain) were to become available yesterday afternoon.</p>
<p>Thanks Californiaaa - so the suspected meningitis at GT is the B strain? That was my question mainly because I’m not getting clear indications that all the reported meningitis infections being reported on campuses across the country isn’t the standard (bad word since it is just as deadly, but can’t think of another) strain that the current approved vaccine protects against. Or are the reports mixing the usual number of reports each year on colleges with the B strain at Princeton?</p>
<p>My apologies, the first story I read with this said that they were unrelated to the Princeton cases and in my head, I read that as it was not the same strain. Not sure why I thought that. </p>
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<p>There are lots of drugs that were widely use a half century or more ago that had terrible side effects. It’s why now the average drug takes years and years to hit markets. There were no such precautions back then. </p>
<p>The only reason this hasn’t been approved by the FDA is because we haven’t (up until now) had a use for it in America.</p>
<p>^ Absolutely, math. Many of the vaccine/medicine trials that my colleagues were running have slowed down/stopped. A lot of them will have to be completely restarted. Such a waste and a tragedy.</p>
<p>Threeofthree-I assume it’s the one that’s not covered by the vaccine because GT requires all students to have the vaccine for meningitis before they can register for classes.</p>
<p>You obviously don’t understand the epidemiology of this disease. Secondly, what the heck does this have to do with “having guts”? </p>
<p>All vaccines must be viewed with risk/benefit in mind. This isn’t a mild disease you can just sit back and allow to take its course. It can be deadly or can leave the patient with devastating effects. I would encourage both my Ds to get the vaccine in a heartbeat if it became available. This is not your garden variety flu.</p>
<p>Here is the e-mail that recently went to parents:</p>
<p>November 22, 2013
The following is the most current information on meningitis at UCSB:</p>
<p>•3 confirmed cases - 2 are recovered and back to school
•County and State Public Health and Centers for Disease Control working to identify strains and advise on further preventive measures - at this time they do not believe the unlicensed serogroup B meningoccal vaccine is needed, but we will continue to update you
•Student Health and County Public Health working to identify and treat close contacts with antibiotics
•Over 500 prophylaxis provided to UCSB students
•The County has provided handouts for all students to give to their healthcare providers if they travel during the Thanksgiving holiday
•Student Health continues to offer both meningitis and flu vaccines at Student Health to all UCSB students
•Vaccines will also be given at the UCEN on Tuesday, 11/26/13 from 11:30am-1:30pm
•Public Health and CDC continue to recommend that campus activities and travel plans continue as planned</p>
<p>The vaccine was recently approved by the EU and Austrailia. This type of meningitis is endemic in those areas, but extremely rare in the US. Novartis (the vaccine’s maker) targeted those markets first (not because it’s easier to get approved there).</p>
<p>This is a scary, albeit rare, disease whose outbreaks take a long time to burn itself out. The risk/reward ratio seems to tilt in favor of drastic action.</p>
<p>Fourth case confirmed today. Not clear when the person fell ill, they are said to be recovering. Considering that test results take a day or two at most, this would seem to be a new infection.</p>
<p>S was home for the holiday and I made sure he knew the symptoms. In typical fashion, he reported that most UCSB students are taking this pretty casually (very scary for me, though!) </p>
<p>Here is the e-mail UCSB sent to parents yesterday:</p>
<p>Subject: UCSB Meningitis Update
Date: December 2, 2013
We are writing with a campus update on meningococcal disease. We’ve been informed that a fourth UCSB student was diagnosed with meningococcal disease. The student is receiving treatment and is expected to recover. All close contacts with the student have been informed and have received prophylactic treatment.</p>
<p>Public Health and the CDC have recommended that classes and campus events can safely continue as scheduled. As a precautionary measure, Public Health, however, is strongly recommending that students and student organizations refrain from participating in social events that involve close personal contact, alcohol, and/or smoking, and where eating utensils and cups/glasses may be shared. All the existing cases appear to have had close personal contact.</p>
<p>The University is working closely with the Santa Barbara County Public Health Department, the California Department of Public Health and the CDC to review existing control measures. Upon the advice of these agencies, UCSB will be providing antibiotics to additional individuals who we believe may have already been exposed to the bacteria based on assessment of the social networks of existing cases. The University will continue to send out and post updates as warranted.</p>
<p>The University and Public Health continue to recommend that students be aware of the symptoms (high fever, severe headache or stiff neck accompanied by vomiting and rash) and seek immediate treatment if they are present. In addition, to prevent the further spread of any infectious diseases, all community members are encouraged to wash their hands frequently and avoid sharing drinking cups and smoking devices.</p>
Thanks for the update, I wondered how he was doing. His personal tragedy was overshadowed by subsequent tragedies at UCSB, so it’s nice to see he wasn’t forgotten by the media. The FDA approved a meningitis B vaccine in October, but I’m not sure if it’s widely available yet.