Surviving Meningococcal
Meningitis
What you need to know.
by Lynn Bozof
TWEENS & TEENS News March 2008
What started out as a typical day for Kayla
St. Pierre one snowy morning in March 2000 quickly
turned into an experience that would forever
change her life. Kayla woke up and began getting
ready for school, as she always did. Feeling
sluggish, Kayla thought she was merely catching
a cold and paid no attention. As the school
day went on, she felt increasingly ill and developed
pains in her legs. The school nurse thought
Kayla had the flu and sent her home to rest
and get better. Within hours after going home,
however, Kayla developed a purple rash that
spread across her body, and she couldn’t
gather enough strength to walk on her own.
After Kayla got admitted to a local hospital
in Boston, doctors immediately treated her for
meningococcal (pronounced: men-ING-jo-kok-ul)
disease. This is a rare but serious bacterial
infection that can cause swelling of the tissues
surrounding the brain and spinal cord (meningitis)
or cause a blood infection (meningococcemia).
In order to save Kayla’s life, doctors
had to remove both of her legs below the knee
and several of her fingers. Kayla also suffered
organ damage, which is commonly associated with
the potentially deadly infection, and had to
get a kidney transplant.
Kayla spent almost a year in the hospital recovering
and undergoing extensive rehabilitation. This
was a year spent fighting for her life, when
it should have been one of school dances and
sleepovers with her friends.
Despite all she had been through, Kayla overcame
these obstacles. She recently graduated from
high school and now attends college, with hopes
of pursuing a career in the medical field. Kayla
spends much of her free time educating her fellow
classmates about the dangers of meningococcal
disease and the methods of prevention through
the National Meningitis Association, an organization
dedicated to raising awareness of the disease
in an effort to protect others from experiencing
its effects.
Many people are unaware of meningococcal disease,
or that teenagers and young adults are at increased
risk for getting this devastating disease. Teenagers
account for nearly 30 percent of the estimated
3,000 meningococcal disease cases that occur
in the United States each year.
The good news is most cases among this age group
can potentially be prevented through vaccination—
a statistic Kayla wish she knew seven years
ago. Yet, the Centers for Disease Control and
Prevention recommends that everyone ages 11
through 18 years get vaccinated against meningococcal
disease.
Vaccination is the best way to prevent meningococcal
disease, as it can be hard for doctors to tell
the difference between meningitis and the flu
in the early stages of the disease. Like the
flu, early signs of meningococcal disease include
high fever, severe headache, stiff neck, confusion,
vomiting and exhaustion, leading many sufferers
to believe they just need rest and fluids in
order to feel better. But, meningococcal disease
is much more serious than the flu. It can kill
an otherwise healthy young person within hours
of first symptoms. Therefore, knowing the signs
and how to prevent the disease, such as through
vaccination, is crucial.
Unfortunately, Kayla’s experience is not
uncommon for those who contract meningococcal
disease.
In 1999, Nick Springer was getting ready to
go to sleepaway camp as he had done every summer
for the past several years. Little did he know,
this was going to be a summer that would impact
the rest of his life. One day while at camp,
Nick felt sick and decided to visit the camp
infirmary. Wanting to watch over him, the camp
nurse kept Nick in the infirmary overnight.
The next morning, Nick woke up vomiting and
noticed a purple rash on his torso. Realizing
Nick had a serious bacterial infection, camp
staff immediately gave him IV antibiotics and
transported him to the nearest hospital.
After Nick was diagnosed with meningococcal
disease, Nick’s parents were notified
and his doctors requested permission to place
him in a medically-induced coma in order to
help him recover from the infection that was
moving rapidly throughout his body. Nick remained
in this coma for nearly two months.
When Nick was brought out of the coma, he had
to undergo surgery to remove both of his hands
and legs above his knees due to the damage caused
by the disease. Nick also experienced some hearing
loss, a long-term effect commonly associated
with the disease.
Neither Nick nor his parents knew that adolescents
are at increased risk for contracting meningococcal
disease, nor that it could potentially be prevented
through vaccination.
Nick has recovered and is now a college student.
He’s active in sports, such as quad rugby,
and will be representing the United States in
the 2008 Paralympics in China. Nick and his
family are determined to make sure other families
and teenagers are educated about meningococcal
disease and how a simple vaccination could possibly
save someone’s life.
Meningococcal disease is spread through air
droplets and close contact, such as coughing
and kissing. Certain behaviors common among
preteens and teenagers may put them at an increased
risk for getting the disease, such as living
in dormitory-style housing, like in college,
attending sleepaway camp, having irregular sleep
patterns, and smoking or being around people
who smoke.
While Kayla and Nick have lasting effects of
the disease, about one out of every four teenagers
who get meningococcal disease dies.
Protect yourself against the disease by knowing
the symptoms and getting vaccinated. For more
information about meningococcal disease and
the vaccine to help prevent it, visit the National
Meningitis Association Web site at www.nmaus.org.
Lynn Bozof is the executive director
and one of five founding members of the nonprofit
organization, the National Meningitis Association
(NMA). Founded in July 2002, NMA is dedicated
to raising awareness of meningococcal disease
among students, parents, the medical community
and others.
