Roanoke Times
Copyright (c) 1995, Landmark Communications, Inc.
DATE: WEDNESDAY, February 26, 1992 TAG: 9202260337
SECTION: VIRGINIA PAGE: A1 EDITION: NEW RIVER VALLEY
SOURCE: MADELYN ROSENBERG HIGHER EDUCATION WRITER
DATELINE: RADFORD LENGTH: Long
BLOOD INFECTION KILLS STUDENT AT RADFORD U.
Radford University officials reported Tuesday that a student died this week just a few days after developing flu-like symptoms caused by a bacterial infection in his blood.The bacteria, meningococcus, is a common cause of meningitis. It also can lead to heart and lung problems.
Thomas E. Hamlett, a freshman and geology major from Rustburg in Campbell County, started feeling sick Friday evening. He went to Student Health Services, but his temperature and blood pressure were normal and he seemed to have "a flu-type thing," said Paul Harris, vice president for student affairs.
By Saturday afternoon, Hamlett felt better and played basketball with some friends. But he woke up at 4 a.m. Sunday with a severe headache and an upset stomach.
He was taken to Radford Community Hospital and transferred to the critical-care unit about 11 a.m. Doctors said he died at 10 a.m. Monday from a meningococcal infection.
The death shocked the university community and alarmed others, who spent Tuesday trying to learn what they could about the disease.
"Everybody is understandably concerned," said Harris. "We're trying to reassure them with all that is being done."
Students are getting counseling, information and medication, Harris said.
Parents and students have been calling the student affairs office.
On campus and in Rustburg, there was mourning.
"Our students are so quiet today," said Bill Skinner, guidance director of Rustburg High School, where many people thought of Hamlett as a friend.
He played soccer, he played drums, he was president of his senior class, a member of the Honor Society. "Everybody knew him," Skinner said. "He was a leader."
At Radford, too, people were beginning to know Hamlett, Harris said. Counselors arranged to talk to his friends and to those who lived near him on the third floor of Floyd Hall.
A memorial service at the university was being planned, probably for the weekend.
Most on the campus of 9,000 students were referring to Hamlett's disease as "meningitis." About 80 percent of the bacterial infections result in that disease.
There is a hazy line between meningitis and the blood infection caused by the bacteria, said Dr. Bradley Perkins of the Meningitis Branch for the Centers for Disease Control in Atlanta.
Meningitis occurs when the bacteria affects the meninges, the membrane that surrounds the brain and spinal cord, causing the membrane to swell. In a few cases, the bacteria hits the bloodstream so quickly there is no time to develop meningitis, and the patient dies, Perkins said.
"That's the type that causes about half of the deaths related to this bacteria," Perkins said.
Most people carry the bacteria in their noses and throats at many times without knowing it or showing symptoms of a disease, Perkins said. "That's how they build up a tolerance."
Most cases of meningitis are found in children under 5, who haven't had time to build a tolerance. Some young adults also develop the disease, Perkins said, but it is rare. Only one in 100,000 people seems to become infected, and about about 10 percent of them die.
The bacteria is spread in the same way a common cold is spread - through touching or other close contact, such as sneezing and coughing. Students, faculty and staff who have come in contact with Hamlett are being asked to come into the health services office to receive the antibiotic Rifampin.
"People are still coming in," Harris said. "They've been retracing their steps, trying to figure out if they were in close contact. If anyone has any doubts, they should come in. We're not turning anyone away."
Meanwhile, the administration has been circulating information sheets describing meningitis, the symptoms and the cause.
"At this time, there is not an epidemic of meningococcal infections in the New River Valley," said Dr. Margaret R. Robinson, director of the New River Health District. "This case represents a sporadic event."
There have been three cases of the bacteria-related infections in the area in the past year, Robinson said. The district has seen an average of one case per year over the past five years.
Common symptoms include severe headaches, nausea or a high fever.
"The problem is that these are the same symptoms from the flu and other things," Harris said. People with the symptoms should see a doctor to rule out the bacterial infection.
At nearby Virginia Tech, doctors and nurses in the infirmary have been told to watch out for symptoms of the disease, but no cases have been reported in several years, said Dr. Phillip Barkley, chief medical officer for student health services.
Lynchburg College saw two cases of the disease late last year and began vaccinating its students in December. A student and a nursing supervisor who contracted the disease are recuperating.
Vaccinations are given only when there are several cases in a small area, Perkins said.
The disease was more common before and immediately after World War II, Perkins said. Since that time, there has been a drastic decline.
"It used to be an epidemic and it stopped," he said. "The reasons aren't completely clear, but it's rarer than it used to be."
Researchers are working on vaccines that would protect young children, but it will be another five to 10 years before the vaccine reaches the market, he said.
\ WHAT'S THE DIFFERENCE BETWEEN BACTERIAL AND VIRAL MENINGITIS?\ BACTERIAL, OR MENINGOCOCCAL, MENINGITIS:
Is an inflammation of the covering of the brain, caused by bacteria.
Causes a severe infection, fatal in about 10 percent of cases.
Has symptoms that may include severe headaches, high fever above 102 or 103, nausea or vomiting, and a stiff neck. Can be cured only with the
help of specific antibiotic treatment.
\ VIRAL MENINGITIS:
Causes inflammation of the covering of the brain, caused by any of several viruses.
In general, causes a much less-severe infection than bacterial meningitis.
Is, in most instances, self-limited, meaning it cures itself without any specific antibiotic treatment. Symptoms can be similar to those of
bacterial meningitis, though they usuallyare not as severe.
Is fatal in rare instances.
Keywords:
FATALITY
Memo: story ran in Metro edition without factbox.