Shanghai health authorities have confirmed that no type C
meningitis patients have been found there, and the number of cases
of other forms of meningitis is smaller than last year.
"Shanghai has made full preparations for any possible outbreak,
including distribution of vaccines, training of medical workers and
publicity of prevention information," said local health bureau
official Wang Panshi.
The city's public health center has drawn up an emergency plan
to pre-empt the disease striking, said its deputy director, Lu
Hongzhou, adding that 99 percent of children in Shanghai have been
vaccinated.
According to the Ministry of Health, 258 cases of meningitis
were reported nationwide in January, with 16 reported deaths. The
eastern provinces of Anhui
and Jiangsu
reported 61 and 15 cases respectively.
Meningitis is an inflammation of membranes surrounding the brain
and spinal cord, and can have a number of different causes,
including both bacteria and viruses. Symptoms include fever,
vomiting and intense headache, and some forms of bacterial
meningitis (including type C) are contagious through close contact
via respiratory secretions.
(Xinhua New Agency February 5, 2005)