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A potentially fatal type of bacteria recently was found in the blood of a 79-year-old Grass Valley woman, whose friends and relatives were put on preventative antibiotics.
The woman has since recovered and there is no reason for the community to fear infection, Community Health Director Brent Packer said Thursday.
The woman was admitted to Sierra Nevada Memorial Hospital Sept. 21 with a fever, cough, and pneumonia-like symptoms.
Officials conducted standard bacterial tests, which spotted the Neisseria meningitidis infection.
Neisseria meningitidis is worrisome because it can enter the tissues surrounding the spinal cord and brain, causing the sometimes-fatal meningitis, Packer said.
The bacteria found in the elderly woman are not responsible for the meningitis thought to have killed Nevada Union High School student Savannah Feinberg, whose illness stemmed from a virus.
When Neisseria meningitidis was found in the 79-year-old last week, the hospital staff took quick action, giving the woman antibiotics and identifying about 25 of her friends and family who might have been exposed, Packer said. They were also given antibiotics, Packer said.
No one else became ill, and the infectious period for the illness has passed, Packer said.
Packer said he suspects the woman picked up the bacteria from someone who carried it without becoming ill. Her age could have made her more susceptible to infection, Packer said.
This type of infection is not very common, particularly in the elderly, Packer said. It is more frequent among college freshmen and military recruits, who are in frequent contact with bacteria carriers.
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To contact staff writer Becky Trout, e-mail beckyt@theunion.com or call 477-4234.
Neisseria meningitidis is a bacteria carried harmlessly in the noses of about 10 percent of the population. Sometimes, however, this bacteria can get into the blood. Once there, it can cause flu-like symptoms.
The bacteria can also move from the bloodstream to the tissues surrounding the spinal cord and brain, causing potentially fatal meningitis. The bacteria is spread through exchange of saliva and nasal fluids. The transfer must be direct because the bacteria perishes when it leaves the body.
Neisseria meningitidis can be treated effectively with antibiotics. A vaccine is available for some types of the bacteria.
Sources: Nevada County Community Health Department, Meningitis Foundation of America
The woman has since recovered and there is no reason for the community to fear infection, Community Health Director Brent Packer said Thursday.
The woman was admitted to Sierra Nevada Memorial Hospital Sept. 21 with a fever, cough, and pneumonia-like symptoms.
Officials conducted standard bacterial tests, which spotted the Neisseria meningitidis infection.
Neisseria meningitidis is worrisome because it can enter the tissues surrounding the spinal cord and brain, causing the sometimes-fatal meningitis, Packer said.
The bacteria found in the elderly woman are not responsible for the meningitis thought to have killed Nevada Union High School student Savannah Feinberg, whose illness stemmed from a virus.
When Neisseria meningitidis was found in the 79-year-old last week, the hospital staff took quick action, giving the woman antibiotics and identifying about 25 of her friends and family who might have been exposed, Packer said. They were also given antibiotics, Packer said.
No one else became ill, and the infectious period for the illness has passed, Packer said.
Packer said he suspects the woman picked up the bacteria from someone who carried it without becoming ill. Her age could have made her more susceptible to infection, Packer said.
This type of infection is not very common, particularly in the elderly, Packer said. It is more frequent among college freshmen and military recruits, who are in frequent contact with bacteria carriers.
ooo
To contact staff writer Becky Trout, e-mail beckyt@theunion.com or call 477-4234.
Neisseria meningitidis is a bacteria carried harmlessly in the noses of about 10 percent of the population. Sometimes, however, this bacteria can get into the blood. Once there, it can cause flu-like symptoms.
The bacteria can also move from the bloodstream to the tissues surrounding the spinal cord and brain, causing potentially fatal meningitis. The bacteria is spread through exchange of saliva and nasal fluids. The transfer must be direct because the bacteria perishes when it leaves the body.
Neisseria meningitidis can be treated effectively with antibiotics. A vaccine is available for some types of the bacteria.
Sources: Nevada County Community Health Department, Meningitis Foundation of America
