The Medical Services have been placed on alert following two cases of meningitis on the island.
Regarding the first case, which was identified at a school in Limassol, Associate Professor of Paediatrics and Paediatric Infectious Diseases Dr Maria Koliou stated on the programme Mesimeri kai Kati that the infection was caused by meningococcus, a dangerous bacterium.
“Meningococcal infection has a mortality rate of around 10%, so it is not an entirely harmless infection. As far as I know, the girl is currently intubated,” she added.
Speaking to SigmaLive about the second case, Health Ministry official Dimitris Konstantinou said that it involved a six-month-old infant in Paphos who has been hospitalised.
“The infant’s condition is currently stable,” he stated.
Precautionary measures taken
Dr Koliou further highlighted the risk of spread among people who had close contact with the infected individuals in the past week. “For this reason, screening has been conducted both at the school and in the home environment, and preventive antibiotic treatment has been administered,” she explained.
She also clarified how the bacterium is transmitted, stating that it spreads through droplets, requiring close contact such as kissing, sneezing in someone’s face, or sharing a drinking glass.
When asked whether the infection was imported or already present in the community, Dr Koliou responded that it exists within the community.
“If we take 100 healthy people walking down the street and test their nasopharynx, we would find that 10-20% of them carry the bacterium without experiencing any symptoms,” she noted.
However, she reassured the public that “there is no cause for concern regarding these specific cases, as all necessary precautions have been taken.”
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