In an effort to further inform the Kent State community and greater Northeast Ohio area on the student diagnosed with Neisseria meningitidis, the university held a press conference in the DeWeese Health Center Tuesday afternoon.
This press conference was led by Dr. Lisa Dannemiller, chief university physician, and Joshua Perkins, associate vice president for student life and dean of students. It came just a day after a Division of Student Life email first informed Kent State students of the diagnosed student.
Dannemiller confirmed the diagnosed student is doing well and that his health is improving, and that two other close contacts have been treated as well. She added he’s still hospitalized at this time and receiving IV antibiotics, but it’s unknown when he’ll be discharged.
The university has yet to identify any other close contacts, but the incubation period for Neisseria meningitidis is usually three to four days, with a range of one to 10 days. This means there is still a low risk of other students catching the infection, according to Dannemiller.
“We’re watching,” she said. “We’ve had students that have come to the health center with questions or have called with questions, but we don’t have any other cases.”
However, Dannemiller reiterated that the infection can only be spread through close, direct contact that involves eating or drinking after someone or having prolonged proximity with respiratory secretions. She added that the student was displaying symptoms for around 24 hours before the university became aware of the infection.
This led to a university response that was executed efficiently, according to both Perkins and Dannemiller.
“We’ve been talking about our response to situations like this for over a year now, and so we’re well-positioned as a university to respond,” Perkins said. “We had the right people at the table.”
He said the university was able to quickly connect with multiple entities like the city of Kent and the Ohio Department of Health, and identify potential close contacts through events they might’ve attended or student organizations they might be a part of. Perkins added that he’s confident in the university’s response to finding close contacts.
These protocols, established by the university in case of a viral health emergency, were originally developed to combat a potential measles outbreak in 2019.
“We were able to get on a call with a number of individuals, immediately Monday morning, pull together our response team,” Perkins said. “From our residence hall staff, to our University Communications, to Dr. Dannemiller, to our cleaning crews. We connected across the university, pulled together an emergency call and then developed our response plan.”
Neisseria meningitidis is very uncommon in the United States, as there’s around one case per 100,000 people, according to Dannemiller.
The university has had one prior case of bacterial infection in the last 13 years, which occurred three years ago. The previous student recovered very well, according to Dannemiller.
The current student wasn’t traveling before he became infected, and was vaccinated with the meningitis vaccine, which offers protection against Neisseria meningitidis, Dannemiller said. She said the cause of the infection can stem from an individual’s low immunity to the bacteria.
“The bacteria actually lives in people’s noses, in healthy people, up to 25%,” Dannemiller said. “But 1% of the population can get an infection.”
The infection, which occurs in the bloodstream, is very serious, and it can lead to a rapid onset of symptoms. This includes a fever, chills, severe aches or pains in the muscles, joints, chest, abdomen, fatigue, cold hands and feet and a rash.
The bacteria can also lead to Neisseria meningitis, which can cause symptoms such as a fever, headache, neck stiffness, confusion, and vomiting.
Students are encouraged to seek medical attention if they develop any of the listed symptoms.
John Engoglia is managing editor. Contact him at [email protected].
Tatum Werntz is a reporter for KSTV. Contact her at [email protected].
