The statewide outbreak of meningococcal disease has claimed the life of a Reston man, his family says.
The family has asked that we not share his identity, but his brother who contacted Northern Virginia Magazine says the death happened shockingly fast.
“He’s playing tennis. He’s feeling better than ever … working out the gym every other day. And so it was just a total shock for everybody, as you could imagine,” the brother says of the February 3 death.
He had seen his brother at a Palm Springs, California, convention just days before.
He says his brother played tennis the day before his death and watched Jeopardy! with his wife that evening. Around 10 p.m., the man, who was a senior citizen, started feeling sick. He threw up and said he had chills, and had a fever of about 100. He slept in a different room because he didn’t want to wake his wife. The next morning, she saw he’d fallen in the bathroom during the night.
At about 8 a.m. the next day, he had trouble breathing and had to be taken by ambulance to Reston Hospital, his brother says. At the time, he had a fever of 103; his pulse was low, and his blood pressure kept dipping, the brother says.
The next morning, his brother’s wife called and told him that “the next four to six hours are crucial.” She called again at 12:30 p.m. to tell him his brother had died.
A blood test shows his brother had Neisseria meningitidis serogroup Y, he says. According to the World Health Organization, bacterial meningitis can be fatal within 24 hours.
In Virginia, that strain of meningococcal disease has been detected in 32 people in Virginia since June 2022. An outbreak was declared in September. Six people have died across the state. The Virginia Department of Health doesn’t comment on individual cases, but its numbers show one case in Northern Virginia.
Meredith Robinson, vaccine-preventable diseases coordinator, says, “VDH is continuing to respond to a statewide outbreak of meningococcal disease. … VDH has established an internal working group to manage the agency’s response. Since June 2022, there have been 32 confirmed cases, resulting in six deaths.”
“Typically, there is one or fewer cases of this disease in the Fairfax Health District each year,” says Lucy Caldwell, spokeswoman for the Fairfax County Health Department. “There are no trending increases in this illness at this time.
“Meningococcal disease is one of those diseases and if our epidemiologists’ investigation found anyone to be at risk, they would make all efforts to contact the individual(s) to provide preventive medications and instructions,” Caldwell says.
The Centers for Disease Control and Prevention recommends getting the meningococcal conjugate vaccine. The VDH recommends the following preventative measures:
- Don’t share personal items (cups, water bottles, eating utensils, cigarettes, vapes, lipsticks, toothbrushes).
- Wash your hands.
- Avoid close contact with sick people.
- Go to the doctor if you experience symptoms of meningococcal disease, which include fever, chills, headache, stiff neck, nausea, vomiting, sensitivity to bright light, and possibly a rash.
Colleen Kelleher contributed to this story.
Feature image of meningococcal bacteria, stock.adobe.com
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