Health officials are attempting to prevent the meningitis outbreak from spreading beyond Kent after confirming the strain, which has killed two students and left 11 gravely sick, is group B.
The UK Health Security Agency (UKHSA) said some cases of meningitis have been confirmed as MenB, and it will confirm other cases ‘when we have the full results’.
MenB is the UK’s most common cause of meningococcal meningitis, but regular vaccination against the strain for babies and young children only started in 2015.
This means the current generation of teenagers and students are not protected, and were instead offered vaccinations against other strains when they were aged 13 or 14.
Experts speculate that young people exchanging vapes at a nightclub may have accelerated the spread of the disease across schools and the University of Kent in Canterbury.
Two girls who were said to have attended Club Chemistry and were sharing vapes were reported to have developed suspected cases of meningitis.
While many of the university’s students come from Kent, thousands more are from London and may have mixed at parties before going to see their families on Mother’s Day. Some will also likely be travelling home for the Easter holidays later this month.
There have already been reports of a suspected case in London involving a 24-year-old woman who had been admitted to hospital, according to her brother Josh Risby, who said she was not a student in Canterbury and had not been to the nightclub.
Mr Risby, 26, who was in Canterbury to receive antibiotics, told Kent Online: ‘The slight concern for us is that I’m not a student here, my girlfriend’s not a student here, my sister’s not a student here, and she’s come down potentially with meningitis.
‘So where’s that come from? So we called 111 and said to them, “You know, this is what’s happened, what do you advise?” And they sent us up here to come and get the antibiotic basically. My sister’s up in London most of the time, living in London, working up there. I don’t have any contact with anybody at the university.’
It comes as health officials work to curb the deadly meningitis outbreak, tracing and treating thousands of potential contacts as reports of suspected cases spread.
The emergency response has seen 2,000 students receive preventative antibiotics in Canterbury after the invasive strain of the disease swept through the city.
Get your teenagers immunised right now, since meningitis is a terrible disease that may cause deafness and death.
If you have flu-like symptoms, a blistering headache and are unable to bend your neck, you must go to the hospital immediately.
Sadly, the Meningitis jab is only given to babies, so by the time they go to university, it has worn off, and they would need another booster to top it up.
The cost of the meningitis jab in the UK varies by provider:
Superdrug: £330 for a full MenB vaccination course (two to three doses).
Boots: £220 for the MenB vaccination.
Asda: £179.76 for the MenB vaccine.
Private pharmacies: Prices can start from £55 for the MenACWY jab
These prices reflect the cost of the vaccine, which is essential for protection against meningitis.
However, the MenACWY vaccine is given to teenagers in the UK. It’s generally offered to teenagers in school when they are 13 or 14, and it’s also available to those up to the age of 25 who have missed the vaccination. The vaccine protects against four strains of meningococcal bacteria, which are common causes of meningitis.
And if it spreads from sharing vapes, then surely it spreads from kissing too, which is more likely in a venue packed with students.
Without showing any symptoms, a person might have the virus in their throat or nose and unknowingly transfer it to others.
We may never know how it started, but I’m sure that it wasn’t done on purpose.
THE MONTHLY MOSQUITO 