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Families urged to learn meningitis symptoms
14 May 2010The UK’s only charity to offer a unique range of free professional services to people affected by meningitis, is encouraging all families throughout the country to be aware of the threat of meningitis in time for ‘International Day for Families’ on Saturday May 15.
The Meningitis Trust, which is the leading voice on the impact of meningitis in the UK, is asking everybody to familiarise themselves with the signs and symptoms of the disease in a bid to save lives. The call was issued after it found that as many as 500,000 people living in the UK have had either viral or bacterial meningitis, and up to one adult in every four knows of someone who has had the disease.
The Meningitis Trust produces FREE life-saving cards designed to fit inside a wallet or purse which display the signs and symptoms of meningitis. To mark ‘International Day for Families’, the charity is urging everyone to get their own card now and to carry it at all times. It is available free from the Meningitis Trust’s helpline on 0800 028 18 28 or to download at www.meningitis-trust.org.
The charity is also encouraging those families which have experienced the disease, and may be in need of support and advice, to contact its team of professionals. One family that did just that was Susan Burke’s. Susan’s nine month old son, Cieran, contracted meningitis in January 2005. Susan says: “Cieran had a high temperature and was burning up, but shivering, was ferociously sick and very drowsy. His experience of the disease has left him scarred for life, with epilepsy, some cerebral atrophy, profoundly deaf (he has a cochlear implant) and has little speech. A doctor once told me that a mother is the best doctor her child will ever see; never shun a mother’s gut feeling, when it comes to the health of her child.”
Common signs and symptoms of meningitis include fever (possibly with cold hands and feet), vomiting, headache, stiff neck, dislike of bright lights, joint or muscle pain, drowsiness, confusion and, in babies, dislike of being handled, pale blotchy skin, unusual cry, and a blank staring expression. Both adults and children may have a rash (septicaemia) that doesn’t fade under pressure. Symptoms can appear in any order and some may not appear at all. Rapid deterioration will take hold if left untreated.
Sue Davie, Chief Executive of the Meningitis Trust says; “Meningitis doesn’t just affect the individual, as the Burke family discovered - the disease can dramatically change the whole family. Through our work we know that meningitis can have a ‘ripple effect’; each case not only affects the person themselves, but many others - close family, friends, work colleagues and/or school friends - even whole communities. In order to minimise the suffering we see every day, we are urging people to familiarise themselves with the symptoms of meningitis and to act quickly if they are concerned”.
For advice and details of the range of free professional support services available from the Meningitis Trust, which include counselling, at therapy, one-to-one contact, home and hospital visits and a 24-hour nurse-staffed helpline, call the helpline (0800 028 18 28) or visit www.meningitis-trust.org.
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