Some 29 people who were in contact with two children who died of meningitis recently, and are now at risk, have been given medication to prevent the disease, Health Minister Terrence Deyalsingh has said.
He gave the information in the Senate yesterday in reply to questions from United National Congress Senator Wade Mark who’d noted the death of a five-year-old Fifth Company Baptist Primary School pupil from the condition and the fear now at the school.
Meningitis is an inflammation of the membranes surrounding the brain and spinal cord. Swelling from meningitis typically triggers symptoms such as headache, fever and a stiff neck. It can be caused by a viral infection but bacterial, parasitic and fungal infections are other causes.
Deyalsingh expressed Government’s condolences to the families of two children, ages four and five, whom he said died of meningitis recently. He said the 29 at-risk people who were in contact with the children were given antibiotics, Prophylaxis, which is medication to prevent meningitis.
Deyalsingh said administering such medication to persons at risk of the disease is part of the ministry’s framework for dealing with the situation. He said this has been fully implemented since learning of the suspected cases. Other pillars of the framework which have all been done include environmental management and sanitation, public education for schools, Parents Teachers Associations and the general public on signs/symptoms of the disease and vaccination.
But Deyalsingh said there is no one vaccination to cover all 14 or 15 causes of meningitis. He added that the ministry tries to ensure that schoolchildren get two vaccines and this would have been given to all such students. Deyalsingh also stressed, “principals are supposed to check vaccination cards of all students entering their schools.”
“Principals are our main ‘gatekeepers’. Also students, before entering schools, must show proof of their vaccination. Their vaccination card must state when they got it, what type and where they got it. It’s the law to get this,” Deyalsingh said.
On another current issue, Energy Minister Franklin Khan was asked about reports that Paria Fuel Trading Company would be sold and if so, the impact on fuel supply to motorists. But Khan reiterated his Monday statement that it would not be sold and the request for proposal for this is being retracted. He noted the headlines in Tuesday’s local newspapers on the matter and repeated the denial statement he issued on Monday.