Disease common in U.S. colleges
By Lovelynn Barlahan
Special to the Daily Forty-Niner
Anthony Fox planned to pursue a career
in import-export sales after graduating.
But his plans were tossed aside in August
after losing his leg and almost dying from meningitis, a potentially life-threatening
bacterial infection.
The 25 year-old, who graduated from Cal
State Long Beach in May with a bachelor's in East Asian studies and psychology,
remains bedridden in his hospital room at the Long Beach Memorial Medical
Center because of the disease.
He will spend a total of six months in
the hospital and another six months in physical therapy.
"I feel like I have a jail sentence for
a year," Fox said. "A total of one year of my life is gone because of this
disease."
The disease, common among college students
living in dorms, can result in permanent brain damage, hearing loss, learning
disability, limb amputation, kidney failure or death.
The disease strikes about 3,000 Americans
a year, leading to death in 10 percent of the cases.
About 100 to 125 cases of the disease occurs
annually on college campuses and 4 to 15 students die as a result. Two
out of 100,000 will be infected with the disease, studies said.
The disease is caused by a microbe causing
inflammation to the membrane, covering the brain and spinal cord, said
Dr. Ming-Yu Cheng, Health Resource Center coordinator.
Common symptoms include high fever, severe
headache, stiff neck, lethargy, nausea, vomiting or rashes.
Sharing items such as cigarettes and drinking
glasses, as well as oral contact such as kissing, could put a person at
risk for acquiring the infection.
Also smoking, excessive alcohol consumption
and living in dormitories could also increase the risk of infection.
Anyone with similar symptoms should contact
a physician immediately. If not treated within hours of the onset of symptoms,
the disease can progress rapidly and lead to shock and death.
Fox was a miracle case because his doctors
doubted he would survive.
Fox received the deadliest strain of the
disease, Neisseria meningicolis, which has between a 70 to 80 percent death
rate.
This form of the disease brings another
symptom called disseminated intracellular coagulation, which causes the
skin to turn black.
Fox suffered these meningitis complications,
which include the falling off of body parts such as arms, ears, nose and
legs.
"My doctors thought if I survived, my brain
would not be functioning or I would have lost all my limbs," Fox said.
In Fox's case, the end result was the amputation
of his left leg last month.
In February, Fox will return to his hometown,
Seattle, Wash., to be with his family. For six months he will undergo extensive
physical therapy to learn how to walk with his prosthetic leg. He said
he hopes to resume his career aspirations.
Fox is not sure where he contacted the
disease.
"People could be carriers and not even
know it," Fox said. "People that are carriers have immune systems that
tolerate the bacteria in their body. Therefore, they don't know they have
it in their body and they could spread it to others."
Fortunately, a vaccine can reduce the risk
of contacting the disease.
CSULB's health center will sponsor a meningitis
education workshop to prevent cases like Fox's from occurring among CSULB
students.
The workshop will provide information on
meningitis and how to get the vaccine.
Fox urges everyone to get vaccinated.
"It's worth the 60 plus bucks for a piece
of mind -- please get vaccinated!" he said.
For more information, one can call the
Health Resource Center on campus at (562) 985-4771. |
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