Eleven die of suspected meningitis - UN agency says

Since 1 July, 11 of the 21 people in Burundi's Ngozi Province suspected to have contracted meningitis have died - with the first cases occurring in the communes of Kiremba, Mwumba, Busiga, and Ruhoro; the UN Office for the Coordination of Humanitarian Affairs (OCHA) reported on Thursday. Another two meningitis cases were reported on Wednesday in Karuzi Province, the UN agency said. The UN Children's Fund (UNICEF), the Ministry of Health, Ngozi's provincial medical officer, and personnel from the Kamenge University Teaching Hospital conducted a joint assessment mission to Ngozi from 19-21 July. They visited the provincial hospital, the hospital in Kiremba, the health centre in Nyamarobe and the Ragwe Hill, where most of the cases have been identified, OCHA reported. The patients they examined suffered from symptoms such as sudden onset of intense headache, fever and stiff neck. After a laboratory examination of cerebrospinal fluid, two out of five samples were evocative of bacterial meningitis, OCHA said. "The serogroup has not been determined yet," it added. A team from the Ministry of Health left on Wednesday to do further examinations in order to determine the serogroup. The Ministry of Health has set up an emergency team - which includes UNICEF, the World Health Organisation and NGOs - to monitor the situation. Vaccinations have already started in the commune of Kiremba, where 15 out of 21 cases were identified. In addition, health officials have decided to stockpile drugs, vaccines and materials for rapid response. These include 48,500 doses of vaccines available within the ministry. Another 50,000 doses ordered by UNICEF arrived on Thursday, and the agency has acquired drugs for the treatment of about 2,000 cases. In other action, UNICEF and the ministry will train personnel in hospitals and health centres to identify and report cases; local authorities in affected areas will sensitise their residents to seek treatment in the presence of signs of meningitis. Vaccination in areas where cases of meningitis have been identified is also one of the priorities, OCHA reported.