Franklin & Marshall College

Questions and Answers

Updated October 29, 2011

The following questions and answers are intended to be a general resource for understanding meningococcal disease and Franklin & Marshall’s protocols for addressing its likely appearance on campus.

What is Franklin & Marshall doing in response to a single case of meningococcal disease on campus?

• As soon as College officials learned about the likely diagnosis of meningococcal disease, we contacted the Pennsylvania Department of Health, sought their advice, and initiated an investigation to identify the patient’s closest contacts. Officials have followed the advice of the Department of Health in our response to this diagnosis.

• Within hours, Franklin & Marshall professional and medical staff met with students of New College House to inform them that a fellow resident is being treated for a form of meningococcal disease. College staff also met with members of student groups with which the patient has been active to inform them and respond to their questions.
   
• As a precaution, students who may have been in the kind of close contact with the patient that could potentially transmit the infection have been given preventive antibiotic treatments. It is important to note that, even in cases of close contact, the rates of transmission are very low, and that the disease is not spread through casual contact with an infected person.

• Dean of the College Kent Trachte sent an email message to all students and parents letting them know that a student is being treated for a likely meningococcal infection, advising them of the disease’s most common symptoms and of how to seek medical advice if they felt unwell or had concerns. The College will continue to inform and update the community as needed in the coming days.

• The College extended the hours of Appel Health Services on Friday night, October 28 and ensured that College Physician Dr. Amy Myers remains on call throughout the weekend to work with students manifesting symptoms or with questions about the disease.

• Dr. Myers can be reached outside of Appel Health Service’s normal hours by calling the Department of Public Safety at x3939. If students need to reach Dr. Myers outside of regular operating hours for Health Services, they can call Public Safety, and Public Safety will be able to contact Dr. Myers.

• In an abundance of caution, dishes and utensils inside New College House were sanitized. All reusable dishes and utensils in dining services locations are always washed and sanitized after each use. It is important to note that the bacteria responsible for the infection do not survive long outside of the human body, and thus the infection is not spread by touching doorknobs, surfaces, etc.

• Finally, Franklin & Marshall is compliant with Pennsylvania Act 83, which requires colleges and universities to prohibit a student from residing in a dormitory unless the student has received a vaccination against MD or signed a waiver for “religious or other reasons.”

The questions and answers below about meningococcal disease are based on information provided by the Pennsylvania Department of Health.

1. What is meningococcal disease?

Meningococcal disease (MD) is any infection caused by the bacteria Neisseria meningitidis, also known as meningococcus bacteria. Common types of MD include meningitis (infection of the membranes surrounding the brain and spinal cord), septicemia (blood infection), pneumonia (lung infection) and septic arthritis (joint infection). All are serious and require medical treatment.

2. What are the signs and symptoms of MD?

Most people who come into contact with meningococcus bacteria do not get sick. When a person does become ill, the symptoms vary by site of infection. High fever, headache, and stiff neck are common symptoms of meningitis. These symptoms can develop over several hours, or they may take 1 to 2 days to manifest. Other symptoms of meningitis might include nausea, vomiting, sensitivity to light, confusion, and sleepiness. In its advanced stages, patients may have seizures. The most common signs and symptoms of meningococcal sepsis (bloodstream infection) are high fever, joint pain, a purplish rash, an elevated white blood cell count, and organ failure. As soon as anyone notices the onset of any of these symptoms, it is important to seek prompt medical attention.

3. Is MD contagious?

Yes, but N. meningitides bacteria are not spread by casual contact or by breathing the air where a person who has MD has been. Instead, the bacteria are usually spread through the exchange of respiratory and throat secretions (i.e., coughing, kissing, or the sharing of eating utensils). The bacteria can spread to people who have had close or prolonged contact with a patient with a disease caused by N. meningitidis. People in the same household, or anyone with direct contact with a patient's saliva (such as a boyfriend or girlfriend) would be considered at increased risk of acquiring the infection, although even in such cases the rate of transmission is very low, estimated at between three and four percent. These bacteria do not live long outside the human body, so you won’t get sick from touching doorknobs, telephones, or other surfaces that have been contaminated with the bacteria.

4. Can MD be treated?

Yes. It can be treated with a number of antibiotics; however, it is important that treatment is started as early as possible. If you have any of the symptoms of MD, please go to Appel Health Services or after hours call the Department of Public Safety at x3939 for assistance. Over the weekend of October 28-30, College physician Dr. Amy Myers is on call 24 hours per day and can be reached with the help of Public Safety.

5. Can MD be spread by coughing and sneezing?

Yes. Covering our mouths when we cough or sneeze is the best way to prevent transmission of N. meningitidis bacteria. Since N. meningitidis bacteria do not live long once they leave the human body, only those who are directly coughed or sneezed upon are at increased risk of infection. However, since coughing and sneezing are not usually a part of meningococcal disease, this is an uncommon way to be exposed.

6. Can MD be prevented?

MD can be prevented in close contacts of infected persons by taking preventive antibiotics. When a case of MD is reported to the Department of Health or a local health department, an investigation is conducted to identify the close contacts and to prescribe antibiotics as appropriate. Franklin & Marshall staff have conducted this investigation in conjunction with the Department of Health and have provided antibiotics accordingly.

7. What do I do if I have been exposed?

People who qualify as close contacts of a person with N. meningitidis disease are receiving antibiotics to prevent them from getting the disease. If as a result of close contact with an infected person the illness occurs, symptoms generally manifest within two or three days and rarely as long as ten days later. Fortunately, the vast majority of exposed persons do not develop any illness. Once a person has been treated for the disease with appropriate antibiotics, he or she can no longer infect anyone else. You also cannot catch the disease from a close contact of a case who received antibiotics to prevent him or her from becoming ill.

8. Are there vaccines against MD?

Yes. Two vaccines licensed in the United States protect against four subgroups of N. meningitidis bacteria (Serogroups A, C, Y and W135). There is no vaccine available against the fifth major subgroup of the disease, Serogroup B. Being vaccinated greatly reduces the risk of being infected with N. meningitides but does not entirely eliminate the possibility of infection.

9. Were all college students vaccinated before arriving on campus?

Franklin & Marshall complies with Pennsylvania Act 83, which requires colleges and universities to prohibit a student from residing in a dormitory unless the student has received a vaccination against MD or signed a waiver for “religious or other reasons,” and to provide information about the risks associated with MD and the availability and effectiveness of any vaccine to any student, and to maintain vaccination records and waivers for all student residing in college residences.

10. For more information about MD:

For additional information about MD, please see http://www.cdc.gov/meningitis/index.html