Four days after a UW-Madison student was admitted for meningococcal disease, a UW-Eau Claire student died of meningitis Sunday.
Nineteen-year-old Sean Coleman, a computer science major from Rib Lake, died Sunday afternoon, hours after being admitted to a local hospital.
According to UW-Eau Claire Executive Director of Communications Mike Rindo, Coleman had flu-like symptoms Saturday night while in his dorm, Catherine Thomas Hall.
The dorm, which Rindo said houses approximately 140 students, held a meeting Sunday night to offer counseling and information on meningitis. As a precautionary measure, university housing and health officials are also distributing the antibiotic Cipro, a one-dose tablet, to the residents and anyone else who may have had contact with Coleman. More than 65 students have already taken the medication, Rindo said.
This is the second fatal case of meningitis at UW-Eau Claire this academic year.
Bacterial meningitis, the type with which both Coleman and the UW-Madison freshman were diagnosed, develops from meningococcal bacteria.
The UW-Madison freshman, who remained in intensive care over the weekend, was released from the unit Monday.
According to University Health Services Community Health Director Craig Roberts, approximately 10 to 15 percent of the population carries meningococcal disease, with roughly one in 100,000 developing meningitis.
One study shows the rate to be slightly higher among university freshmen living in the dorms, Roberts said, but the chances of developing meningitis are as good for one person as the next.
\A lot of that has to do with a person's immune system and some of it's probably genetic,"" he said. ""You can't predict it at all; it's very case-by-case.""
Roberts said while most people recover from meningitis, about 10 percent of cases are fatal and another 10 percent result in severe complications.
Though no cure exists, UHS Director of Clinical Services Scott Spear said a vaccine prevents about 70 percent of meningitis strains. However, this vaccination only protects the patient from the illness and he or she could still be a carrier of the bacteria.
""If you're going to get the vaccine you should get it before you go to college,"" he said, adding that the general population of college students is at no greater risk of developing meningitis than before.
Meningitis is transmitted through nasal or oral secretions, such as saliva or mucus, Roberts said, so one way students can protect themselves is by not sharing utensils, glasses or cigarettes.
""Kissing is probably the number one way that people spread the bacteria,"" he said.
Roberts also said that while approximately 12 to 14 students die at UW-Madison each year, cases such as meningitis generally spread more concern throughout the university community because of the nature of the illness.
""It can act very very quickly and people can go from feeling perfectly well to near death in a matter of hours,"" he said.
""Feeling sicker than you ever have, having a fever over 102 degrees and a severe headache, that's something that you don't have to figure out whether it's meningitis or not. If you're that sick you need to be seen and you usually need to be seen now.""
