The health station in Thuong Tan Commune has issued a rapid report on a meningococcal disease case in the area. The patient is currently receiving treatment at Children's Hospital 2 and remains in stable condition.
The patient, identified as B.T.T., 12, developed symptoms on the morning of October 13, including fever, sore throat, neck pain, and severe headache, with no cough or runny nose. On October 14, the child was taken for a medical examination and was diagnosed with a viral infection. On October 15, after the high fever persisted, the family sought medical attention again.
Following examination and testing, doctors suspected meningitis and instructed the family to take the child to Children's Hospital 2 where the patient was found to have neck stiffness, cloudy yellow cerebrospinal fluid, and elevated white blood cell levels. A multiplex PCR test confirmed infection with Neisseria meningitidis, the bacterium that causes meningococcal disease.
After antibiotic treatment, the patient's condition improved, with no fever or vomiting, reduced headaches, stable vital signs, no weakness or paralysis in the limbs, and continued treatment.
An epidemiological investigation found that during the two weeks before becoming ill, the child mainly stayed at home and attended Ngo Thoi Nhiem School and an English language center. Thuong Tan Commune Health Station identified four close household contacts. The patient's parents have taken preventive medication, while the maternal grandparents were instructed to use preventive medication as prescribed.
The health station also guided the family on environmental cleaning and disinfection measures and health monitoring. At the same time, it coordinated with the Tan Uyen Ward Health Station to trace and verify close contacts at the English language center.
Previously, the city's health sector recorded a cluster of four meningococcal disease cases at Hai Ba Trung Secondary School in Hiep Phuoc Commune. The outbreak resulted in one child's death, while three others were admitted to the Hospital for Tropical Diseases for treatment.
As of October 19, the cluster had been brought under control. All 177 close contacts had received preventive antibiotics and were being monitored daily. No additional cases had been recorded since October 17, and the three hospitalized patients remained in stable condition.
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