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Limoges: baby dies of meningitis

2020-01-21T15:34:01.240Z


According to the services of the Regional Health Agency, the risk of transmission of the disease remains very low.


A baby, whose age and sex have not been specified, died this weekend after being "treated for an invasive meningococcal infection" in Limoges (Haute-Vienne), reports Le Populaire du Center .

The infant "was taken care of quickly and was not in contact with other children," added the office of the prefect of Haute-Vienne to France Bleu Limousin. "The risk of transmission of the disease is very low," says the prefect.

Saliva transmission

"You have to be face to face, the bacteria is transmitted by the droplets of saliva, it does not resist in the air", explains, for his part, Doctor Matthieu Mechain of the Regional Health Agency (ARS) of Nouvelle-Aquitaine at the Populaire du Center.

The type of bacteria that infected the infant is not yet known to the services of the ARS. "Beyond individual treatment, antibiotic treatment was administered to prevent the occurrence of new cases: to the child's entourage, to emergency professionals and doctors of the establishment," said Matthieu Mechain .

A disease to be treated very quickly

In 2019, several associations launched the alert in order to raise public awareness of the symptoms of the disease, which can lead to death or serious disabilities.

Meningitis is a viral or bacterial infection of the meninges, the membranes that surround the brain and spinal cord. It can occur in children and young adults, but mainly affects infants under 1 year of age. The symptoms (fevers, vomiting) initially resemble those of gastroenteritis.

The light and noise also hurt the head, the neck is stiff. A few hours after infection, the appearance of "purpura fulminans" (red or purple spots that gradually cover the lower limbs) should immediately alert. This symptom does not necessarily appear, but it is one of the most serious complications. If meningitis is not treated very quickly, it causes death in 10% of cases, and also leaves one in five patients with severe disabilities.

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Since 2018, a meningitis vaccine has been mandatory for infants. The introduction of this obligation has made it possible to considerably reduce the number of children who die from meningitis, according to the Institut Pasteur. Young adults, between 16 and 24 years of age, less vaccinated, are the second population most affected by this infection.

Source: leparis

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