New cases of meningitis reported

Two new cases of meningitis have been reported in Switzerland, less than a week after a girl died of the deadly brain disease in Fribourg. Medical staff at a hospital in canton Ticino say they are treating two teenagers for the disease.

Two new cases of meningitis have been reported in Switzerland, less than a week after a girl died of the deadly brain disease in Fribourg. Medical staff at the San Giovanni hospital in Bellinzona say a 14-year-old girl and a 15-year-old boy admitted this week are responding well to their treatment.

The two teenagers attend the same school in Cadenazzo, near Locarno. However, the school’s headmaster said the cases were isolated, since the teenagers were in different classes and not in contact. He stressed that the situation was under control.

Last month, the federal health office announced that the number of meningitis cases in Switzerland had reached record levels in 1999. There were 168 recorded cases of the disease, an increase of 40 per cent over 1998. Around ten per cent of cases are fatal.

The health office said there was no cause for alarm, underlining that nearly all European countries had reported increased cases of meningitis last year.

From staff and wire reports