There is no need to panic over the current meningitis outbreak in South Africa, the South African Medical Association (Sama) said on Tuesday.
Its assurance followed recent deaths from the disease in several provinces.
Sama chairperson Denise White said although the meningitis cases were a major source of concern, there was ”currently no reason for panic”.
She said that according to the national Department of Health, there had been a steady decline in meningitis cases in the past few years.
There had been only 35 cases reported countrywide this year, compared to 50 between January and March last year.
In Gauteng, there were 31 cases last year. There had been 12 so far this year.
”However, Sama does not underestimate the impact this disease can have on a community, and urges parents and communities to be aware of the symptoms and immediately consult their nearest doctor if they suspect a family member [is] suffering from these symptoms,” she said.
Bacterial meningitis was particularly life-threatening and people who had been in contact with someone who was affected should undergo urgent treatment and vaccination.
White said the National Institute for Communicable Diseases had made it clear that there was currently no need for antibiotic prophylaxis to be given to people who had not been in close contact with meningitis cases.
Nor was there need for vaccination purely in response to those cases.
Meningitis is an inflammation of the meninges, the membranes surrounding the brain and spinal cord.
White said the classic symptoms of meningitis were fever, intense headache, vomiting, joint and muscle pain, very light-sensitive eyes, a patch-like rash and neck stiffness.
The Eastern Cape health department said on Tuesday that test results showed that a two-year-old girl who died in East London’s Frere Hospital at the weekend had tubercular meningitis, not the more virulent meningococcal variety.
Department spokesperson Sizwe Kupelo said an outbreak response team had visited the community the girl came from to distribute prophylaxis, and would remain in the area. — Sapa