Barton County Health Department
The Kansas Department of Health and Environment is still studying the medical culture from a Barton County resident’s death, but it is highly likely the death was caused by Neisseria meningitidis.
Barton County Health Director Shelly Schneider says the victim was a middle-aged resident, and the results from the KDHE laboratory should be done within a week.
Schneider says meningitis can be found in everyone.
Shelly Schneider Audio
Meningitis is an infection of the tissue that surrounds the brain and spinal cord, and Neisseria meningitidis is only spread from person-to-person by sharing throat or respiratory secretions. Symptoms of meningitis include fever, headache, stiff neck, chills, and feeling weak or tired.
While the Health Department is working on identifying all persons at high risk of exposure to the individual, Schneider says if you or someone you know is suffering from any symptoms to get evaluated immediately.
Shelly Schneider Audio
Schneider says the key to curing meningitis, like many diseases, is catching it quickly. Catching the disease quickly can be difficult. There are two different types of meningitis, bacterial and viral. Schneider says if a person is over-treated for bacterial meningitis with antibiotics, then eventually the disease will not be susceptible to the drugs that cure the meningitis. This is the reason why health departments are very selective in the people they treat for the disease.