Medical Alert

Viral meningitis case on campus

By Marisa Kratochvil
Editor in Chief

A case of viral meningitis has been reported on the Monmouth College campus and students are being asked to take the necessary precautions.

According to Mohsin Masood, associate dean of students, confirmation of the case was made Monday night and was immediately posted on the college message board.

The infected student went home Thursday, March 30 and was released from the hospital yesterday afternoon.

“The family is keeping us [Student Affairs office] posted on his condition,” Masood said. “He is doing much better and improving.”

“Some days are better than others, pain wise,” commented a close friend of the infected student.

Apparently, when the student was admitted to the hospital, he was complaining of severe pain in his head due to pressure on the brain.

At first, he rated his pain an eight or nine, on a scale of one to 10.

“The pain is subsiding a lot,” his friend added. “He got up Wednesday and walked.”

According to the Knox County Health Department, “Viral meningitis is an infection of the fluid in the spinal cord and the fluid that surrounds the brain [and] is caused by any of a number of different viruses, many of which are associated with other diseases.”

The mildest form of meningitis, it almost always occurs in single, isolated events, and outbreaks are rare.

Transmission of viral meningitis occurs by direct contact with nose or throat secretions of the infected person (i.e., kissing on the mouth, sharing a glass or straw, sharing eating utensils, etc.).

Failure to wash one’s hands after using the toilet or other contacts with infected stool can also transfer the virus.

In general, the incubation phase varies among people, usually two to 10 days, and symptoms appear within one week of exposure.

Symptoms include high fever, headache, stiff neck, tiredness, rash, sore throat and vomiting.

Any student with the above symptoms should immediately see a doctor, the health department advises.

There is no treatment for viral meningitis.

Student are advised to wash their hands with soap and warm water after using the toilet, before preparing or eating meals and after sneezing or coughing as preventative measures.