OFFICIALS SAY LONDON NOT AT INCREASED RISK

January 3, 1998

OFFICIALS SAY LONDON NOT AT INCREASED RISK

By Jonathan Sher -- Free Press Reporter There's an outbreak of nervous Londoners phoning the local health unit with concerns about meningitis, health officials say.
While the meningitis outbreak in Kitchener has claimed two lives and triggered a vaccination program in Kitchener-Waterloo, it also has sparked needless worry in London and area, Dr. Bryna Warshawsky of the London Middlesex Health Unit said Friday.
Since the outbreak, the health unit has been flooded with meningitis-related phone calls -- between 50 and 150 daily.
"We've been spending most of our time on the phone," said Warshawsky, who works in the unit's infectious disease department.
"There's absolutely no reason for Londoners to be concerned. They're at no increased risk for meningitis," she said.
Since public health officials believe there is no risk in the London area, the health unit will not vaccinate Londoners.
The only way a Londoner can get a vaccine here is to persuade a doctor to issue a prescription, which costs about $50. Some pharmacies carry the vaccine -- it is used for people travelling to high-risk areas overseas, Warshawsky said.
Those who plan short trips to the Kitchener don't need a vaccine, she said. They should instead take simple precautions that eliminate the chance of contracting bacteria, which travel via saliva -- don't kiss, share food or spend hours with your face in close proximity of someone else. School athletes should avoid sharing water bottles.
For most Londoners, the vaccine would pose more risk than its benefit, since some will get an allergic reaction, she said.
The only Londoners who should get the vaccine, Warshawsky said, are those who both fall within the susceptible age range, two to 22, and will spend significant amount of time in Kitchener because of work or school. They can receive a free vaccine at a Kitchener clinic.
Meningitis, though unusual, is not rare. There was a case in London as recently as October, Warshawsky said. An infected woman was cured then, and the disease spread no further.
In fact, 10 per cent of the population carries bacteria which can cause meningitis, but most people are resistant to most strains of the disease, she said.