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CountAllVotes

(20,854 posts)
Sun Apr 21, 2013, 02:45 PM Apr 2013

Deadly meningitis outbreak among gays worries officials

Source: NBC News

A deadly bacterial meningitis outbreak striking gay men in New York City is unlikely to abate any time soon, New York City health officials warn. The disease has sickened 22 and killed seven NYC men over the last two years.

After four cases of meningococcal disease among gay men were reported in Los Angeles county in recent months, there were concerns that the New York City outbreak had spread, but public health officials in Los Angeles and New York say the strains are not connected.

The New York City outbreak has been linked to parties, online websites or apps that men used to find other men for "close or intimate sexual contact," according to health officials. But for more than half of the men sickened by meningitis, there was no evidence that the men had used any of these means to encounter other men, according to public health officials.

The specific strain linked to all the cases in New York City is part of serogroup C. It’s the same strain that first surfaced when a woman came down with meningitis in New York City back in 2003. The speed in which meningitis kills has complicated the search for people at risk.



Read more: http://vitals.nbcnews.com/_news/2013/04/21/17726549-deadly-meningitis-outbreak-among-gays-worries-officials?lite&ocid=msnhp&pos=2



Oh great, now there are four cases (or more?) that have occurred in Los Angeles, a long distance from New York. Meningitis is no joke and few live to talk about it best I know. It is highly contagious, this too I know and YES, meningitis is transmitted sexually and other ways as well.

Careful folks, careful!!



20 replies = new reply since forum marked as read
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Deadly meningitis outbreak among gays worries officials (Original Post) CountAllVotes Apr 2013 OP
Bacterial meningitis is NOT a sexually transmitted disease. kestrel91316 Apr 2013 #1
my late brother contracted meningitis as a child CountAllVotes Apr 2013 #3
Sorry about your brother. In this case sometimes things happen. That they were gay or not I am not still_one Apr 2013 #5
Being gay has nothing to do with contracting meningitis, other than kestrel91316 Apr 2013 #7
Exactly Yo_Mama Apr 2013 #12
Did anyone in the last 2 years who is not gay contract it? CountAllVotes Apr 2013 #10
Post removed Post removed Apr 2013 #6
Where do I state the cases are related? CountAllVotes Apr 2013 #9
You expressed concern that they might be, but the article plainly kestrel91316 Apr 2013 #11
Yes, I stated concern CountAllVotes Apr 2013 #15
no it is not transmitted sexually johnnypneumatic Apr 2013 #2
Meningococcal Vaccines hedgehog Apr 2013 #4
Thanks for posting this link CountAllVotes Apr 2013 #8
Re your brother: kestrel91316 Apr 2013 #13
Did you read my posts? CountAllVotes Apr 2013 #17
Thanks for posting this warning. hrmjustin Apr 2013 #14
Your are very welcome CountAllVotes Apr 2013 #16
Hmmm. Can be a nasty bug, but not terribly novel..... paleotn Apr 2013 #18
I personally know of two cases CountAllVotes Apr 2013 #19
Unusual, but not impossible.... paleotn Apr 2013 #20
 

kestrel91316

(51,666 posts)
1. Bacterial meningitis is NOT a sexually transmitted disease.
Sun Apr 21, 2013, 02:52 PM
Apr 2013

From the CDC:

Transmission
The germs that cause bacterial meningitis can be contagious. Some bacteria can spread through the exchange of respiratory and throat secretions (e.g., kissing). Fortunately, most of the bacteria that cause meningitis are not as contagious as diseases like the common cold or the flu. Also, the bacteria are not spread by casual contact or by simply breathing the air where a person with meningitis has been. Other meningitis-causing bacteria are not spread person-to-person, but can cause disease because the person has certain risk factors (such as a weak immune system or head trauma). Unlike other bacterial causes of meningitis, you can get Listeria monocytogenes by eating contaminated food.
Sometimes the bacteria that cause meningitis spread to other people. This usually happens when there is close or long contact with a sick person in the same household or daycare center, or if they had direct contact with a patient's oral secretions (such as a boyfriend or girlfriend). People who qualify as close contacts of a person with meningococcal or Haemophilus influenzae type b (Hib) meningitis are at higher risk of getting disease and may need antibiotics (see Prevention). Close contacts of a person with meningitis caused by other bacteria, such as Streptococcus pneumoniae, do not need antibiotics. Tell your doctor if you think you have been exposed to someone with meningitis.
Healthy people can carry the bacteria in their nose or throat without getting sick. Rarely, these bacteria can invade the body and cause disease. Most people who ‘carry’ the bacteria never become sick.

http://www.cdc.gov/meningitis/bacterial.html#transmission

~~~~~~~~~~~~

It is spread by close contact with respiratory/throat secretions such as when kissing. That does not and never has equalled "sexually transmitted".

Wikipedia isn't perfect, but it's a good place to start for general info about meningococcal meningitis.

http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Meningococcal_disease

CDC is a wealth of info on this:

http://www.cdc.gov/vaccines/pubs/pinkbook/mening.html

"....Meningococcal conjugate vaccine has been licensed in United Kingdom since 1999 and has had a major impact on the incidence of type C meningococcal disease. A quadrivalent conjugate vaccine was first licensed in the United States in 2005...."

Completely preventable with vaccination.

CountAllVotes

(20,854 posts)
3. my late brother contracted meningitis as a child
Sun Apr 21, 2013, 02:58 PM
Apr 2013

and yes, it almost killed him. He was permanently brain damaged for life. He was a child of 2-years of age and my parents were never able to identify how he contracted it.

It was believed that an old WWII friend of my late father that had come to visit our house who had been in Ft. Ord, CA at the time when there was an outbreak there (c. 1960) was a carrier perhaps.

I don't know and it seems they don't know. That is why they are posting this information.

The people that have contracted it were gay men and it is believed the cases in New York were sexually transmitted.

As for the cases in Los Angeles, they don't seem to have this pinned down yet.

still_one

(91,937 posts)
5. Sorry about your brother. In this case sometimes things happen. That they were gay or not I am not
Sun Apr 21, 2013, 03:05 PM
Apr 2013

sure how they come to that link.

Did anyone in the last 2 years who is not gay contract it?

 

kestrel91316

(51,666 posts)
7. Being gay has nothing to do with contracting meningitis, other than
Sun Apr 21, 2013, 03:08 PM
Apr 2013

THAT is the particular community it is spreading among right now. They socialize together >>>> it spreads.

It's just like if it gets into a high school or university. Friends spread it to friends.

Yo_Mama

(8,303 posts)
12. Exactly
Sun Apr 21, 2013, 03:46 PM
Apr 2013

However the closer the contact, the more likely transmission is.

That's why if they have even one case in a HS they go on high alert. It's important to publicize the info so that people seek medical treatment quickly, which very well may save the life of the patient.

CountAllVotes

(20,854 posts)
10. Did anyone in the last 2 years who is not gay contract it?
Sun Apr 21, 2013, 03:23 PM
Apr 2013

I do not know the answer to your question.

What I do know is this: I was living in SF when the AIDS epidemic arose. They did not want to close down the bath houses where it was being spread like wildfire because no one wanted to dare think it was AIDS, it was called a "gay cancer" at the time (late 1970s-early 1980s ... and YES there were people dying of AIDS in the late 1970s because I know of a man that died of what they called "natural causes" at the age of 25 years and he was gay and very sexually active and suddenly developed what came to be known as Kaposki's Sarcoma and he died not long after that.) They had no name for what it was other than a "gay cancer" at that time.

Don't take it lightly, that is all I will say because I've seen it all from beginning to where it is now. I was one of those people out there working and searching for cure for AIDS. That is what I did for a job for about 10 years.

So yes, be careful please. That is all I have to say about this.

Response to CountAllVotes (Reply #3)

CountAllVotes

(20,854 posts)
15. Yes, I stated concern
Sun Apr 21, 2013, 03:48 PM
Apr 2013

Did you read the rest of my posts about the AIDS epidemic in SF in the late 1970s-early 1980s?

GAY CANCER it was called. No one dared think it was a sexually transmitted disease and as we know now it is.

The CDC doesn't issue statements like this for no reason at all. They have their reasons and what they are we will not know until they figure it out themselves.

johnnypneumatic

(599 posts)
2. no it is not transmitted sexually
Sun Apr 21, 2013, 02:58 PM
Apr 2013

a few more sentences from the article:

-“Many of the outbreaks happen in settings where a lot of people live or socialize together, like college dorms or army barracks,” Osterholm said.

-Osterholm agreed. “This has nothing to do with being gay,” he said.

-The bacteria is spread by close contact – such as kissing, or sharing a toothbrush, a cigarette or even a coffee cup.

CountAllVotes

(20,854 posts)
8. Thanks for posting this link
Sun Apr 21, 2013, 03:12 PM
Apr 2013

Who should get meningococcal vaccine and when?

Routine Vaccination

Two doses of MCV4 are recommended for adolescents
11 through 18 years of age: the first dose at 11 or 12 years of age, with a booster dose at age 16.

Adolescents in this age group with HIV infection should get three doses: 2 doses 2 months apart at 11 or 12 years, plus a booster at age 16.

If the first dose (or series) is given between 13 and 15 years of age, the booster should be given between 16 and 18. If the first dose (or series) is given after the 16th
birthday, a booster is not needed.

Other People at Increased Risk

College freshmen living in dormitories.

Laboratory personnel who are routinely exposed to
meningococcal bacteria.

U.S. military recruits.

Anyone traveling to, or living in, a part of the world
where meningococcal disease is common, such as
parts of Africa.

Anyone who has a damaged spleen, or whose spleen
has been removed.

Anyone who has persistent complement component
deficiency (an immune system disorder).


People who might have been exposed to meningitis
during an outbreak.
Children between 9 and 23 months of age, and anyone
else with certain medical conditions need 2 doses for
adequate protection. Ask your doctor about the number
and timing of doses, and the need for booster doses.
MCV4 is the preferred vaccine for people in these
groups who are 9 months through 55 years of age.
MPSV4 can be used for adults older than 55.

Kind of ascertains my post about my late brother and the old WWII pal of my late father. He was a carrier it seems and this supports that theory and YES it is highly contagious!

As for my late brother, I do not believe there was a vaccine available at the time he contracted it and no one and I mean no one kissed him nor touched him. He was a young toddler and suddenly all hell broke lose. I was not that old myself at the time and my memory fails to remember the horrors of this upon my family. It was sheer hell, that much I remember and EVERYONE was scared as sh*t!



 

kestrel91316

(51,666 posts)
13. Re your brother:
Sun Apr 21, 2013, 03:46 PM
Apr 2013

Somebody in your home or that he had contact with was an asymptomatic carrier, and he drew the short straw. Sometimes it's that simple (and sad).

Multivalent meningococcal vaccine has been available in the US since at least 2005. Not sure about monovalent.

CountAllVotes

(20,854 posts)
17. Did you read my posts?
Sun Apr 21, 2013, 03:52 PM
Apr 2013

I stated that a man came to our home to visit my late father from Ft. Ord, CA where there was a meningitis outbreak at that time.

While he did not have meningitis himself, he was perhaps a carrier.

We never knew and never will know.

CountAllVotes

(20,854 posts)
16. Your are very welcome
Sun Apr 21, 2013, 03:50 PM
Apr 2013

I would seriously hate to revisit the carnage I saw living in SF from the 1970s-1990s.

I know of many that died, many.

May all of them RIP.

Knowledge is power, please do not forget this ever.

On edit: They had a newspaper in SF at that time called the "Gay Advocate". On the front page I recall my friend (who luckily did not die from AIDS because he must have quit going to those damn bath houses that he used to frequent (upon my advice I shall add)), showing me a copy of it with a headline on it about a Gay Cancer. He was very scared. I told him to stay the hell away from those damned places. It seems he did as he is still alive today living in another place. I suspect all of his friends died from AIDS as the infection rate when finally realized was said to be at 80% of all gay men in San Francisco at that time.



paleotn

(17,778 posts)
18. Hmmm. Can be a nasty bug, but not terribly novel.....
Sun Apr 21, 2013, 05:53 PM
Apr 2013

...Quite dangerous for people with other chronic health issues. It's passed through relatively close, casual contact. There's evidence the bacterium can be passed via droplets much like flu or cold viruses, but doesn't live long outside the human body. Not terribly virulent, but can, in certain cases, do some rather nasty things to the human body. Since there's no known zoological reservoir, the thinking is some of us act as carriers, perpetuating the bacterium and causing occasional outbreaks. No info about new strains and many of us have been exposed in our lifetimes to various known strains. Luckily, there are vaccines for all that are known.

The numbers of affected in the article are an outbreak, clustered in a certain group and needs watching, but nothing too far out of the ordinary. Outbreaks of Meningococcal occur occasionally in the US but are rare. A bit more common in the developing world, but still relatively rare.

CountAllVotes

(20,854 posts)
19. I personally know of two cases
Sun Apr 21, 2013, 06:06 PM
Apr 2013

#1 -- my late brother (he did not die from this however but it left him damaged for life).

#2 -- a former co-worker that contracted it (he was older than my brother; born c. 1950 or so). It left him deaf. That is why I remember him so well as I remember him telling me that being deaf was hell because you never knew what the hell was going on around you.

Two cases I personally know of. Is that just plain odd or what?

Add in all of the cases at Ft. Ord at the time my brother contracted it. The whole base was locked-down due to it. Ft. Ord FYI used to be a large U.S. Army base in Calif.



paleotn

(17,778 posts)
20. Unusual, but not impossible....
Sun Apr 21, 2013, 08:34 PM
Apr 2013

...you had the misfortune of being close to a serious outbreak. There's still a lot we just don't know about meningococcus. Why does it sometimes cause serious disease in seemingly health people and at other times does not? We just don't know.

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