Meningitis: Cases rise to 20 as health officials deal with ‘explosive’ outbreak

Five new cases of meningitis have been reported in Kent, taking the total number being investigated by health officials to 20.

The UK Health Security Agency (UKHSA) said that, as of 5pm on Tuesday, some 20 cases of meningitis had been reported to it, up from 15 previously.

Of these, nine cases have been confirmed in the lab and 11 remain under investigation.

Six of the confirmed cases have been confirmed as the meningitis B strain.

A statement said: “All those affected who are currently linked to the outbreak are young adults.

“UKHSA is aware of a baby with confirmed meningococcal group B infection who is not currently linked to the outbreak but UKHSA will continue to investigate this case.”

GPs across the country have now been told to prescribe antibiotics to anyone who visited Club Chemistry in Canterbury from March 5-7, plus students from the University of Kent.

This is to ensure anyone who has left campus can make sure they get the right treatment.

The UKHSA said: “This is a rapidly evolving situation and there may be further cases as those with symptoms are encouraged to seek medical advice.

“Antibiotics remain the most effective treatment to limit the spread of invasive meningococcal disease.

“So far, over 2,500 doses have been given to students, close contacts and others, including some of those who attended Club Chemistry between March 5-7.

“GPs across the country will today be advised to prescribe antibiotics to anyone who visited Club Chemistry between March 5-7 and to University of Kent students, if they have been asked to seek preventative treatment.

“This is so that anyone who has travelled home, or away from Kent, can easily access this important preventative treatment close to them.”

Trish Mannes, UKHSA regional deputy director for the South East, said antibiotics are “the main intervention that will help protect people and halt the spread of the outbreak”.

She added that 5,000 University of Kent students at the Canterbury campus will be offered a menB jab, “with the possibility that it may be extended, as it is kept under continual review”.

Two students have died during the outbreak, including 18-year-old Juliette Kenny, who was studying for her A-Levels.

The number of cases is expected to rise because the incubation period for the infection to when symptoms appear is two to 14 days.

The outbreak is being viewed by experts as unprecedented owing to the high number of cases appearing in such a short space of time.

A meeting of local Integrated Care Board officials and UKHSA regional staff is taking place on Wednesday morning, with an announcement expected later on the vaccine rollout.

The UKHSA stressed there is plenty of NHS stocks of menB vaccines after pharmacies reported they were struggling to obtain stock for people who want to pay privately.

A UKHSA spokeswoman told the Press Association on Wednesday of NHS stock: “There are sufficient menB vaccine stocks.

“We will work with local resilience partners to ensure effective distribution.”

All reported cases so far have a link to Kent, according to the UKHSA. At least one person who fell ill and had links to Kent attended a London hospital.

This person had “no community contacts in London”, the UKHSA said, suggesting the risk of spread in the capital is low.

Meanwhile, French authorities said a person who was admitted to hospital with meningitis in France after coming back from England is now in a “stable” condition.

The French Ministry of Health told PA no other cases of meningitis linked to the outbreak in Kent have been reported in France.

Health officials stressed that people should not skip antibiotics if prescribed them, with a single tablet of Ciprofloxacin reducing the risk of meningitis in a household by about 80% to 90%.

Health Secretary Wes Streeting said there are at least 350 cases of meningitis every year and he would not be surprised “if in different parts of the country, we see cases presented that are unconnected to this particular outbreak in Canterbury”.

He told BBC Breakfast: “What’s worried us about the Canterbury outbreak is the pace and extent of the spread of the disease.

“That is unprecedented, and that’s why we are being so proactive in the provision of antibiotics, because they’re an effective treatment, but also standing up vaccination at a pace and in a way that we wouldn’t normally do.

“I hope that that will give some reassurance to people.”

Asked if there was concern the outbreak could spread to other parts of the country as students leave Canterbury, Mr Streeting said: “No, and lots of students from Kent have already gone home.

“It’s exam week at the university this week, so there are still quite a few students around sitting their exams.

“Lots of students will have gone home, and that’s fine. That’s OK.

“What we need people to do is to think through in terms of their individual situations – were they at Club Chemistry on March 5, 6 or 7? If the answer to that question is yes, the sensible thing to do is to access antibiotics.”

He added that other students at schools and the college in Canterbury should still attend.

“The reassuring thing here is that this disease spreads through close, personal contact. So it is things like kissing, sharing drinks, sharing vapes.”

Mr Streeting said the meningitis outbreak was not a national incident, but the response was being managed nationally.

“This is not currently a national incident,” he told BBC Breakfast, adding that “this is the national response, or the response is being managed nationally”.

For people seeking vaccines privately, Boots has implemented a queuing system to enter its website, with a warning that demand for its menB vaccination service is currently high.

Superdrug has also created a waiting list, with a note on its website informing customers of a “national shortage” of the jab. It said it is “working with suppliers to access further stock”.

Mr Streeting said he understood why people would want vaccines privately but people do not need to, adding there was plenty of NHS stock for those who have been told they need a jab.

UKHSA chief executive Susan Hopkins said on Tuesday that officials were looking at a “super-spreader event”.

She added: “I can’t yet say where the initial infection came from, how it’s got into this cohort, and why it’s created such an explosive amount of infections.

“I can say that in my 35 years working in medicine, in healthcare and hospitals, this is the most cases I’ve seen in a single weekend with this type of infection.

“It’s the explosive nature that is unprecedented here – the number of cases in such a short space of time.”

England’s deputy chief medical officer, Dr Thomas Waite, said: “This is by far the quickest-growing outbreak I’ve ever seen in my career, and I think probably any of us have seen, of meningitis for a very long time.”

Laboratory scientists are urgently trying to work out if the spread is caused by a possible mutant strain of menB.

The genome of the menB strain identified in the outbreak is undergoing whole genome sequencing to see if there are any differences to known strains.

It will also be tested against available menB vaccines, though experts stressed people should get a jab if eligible.