Newborn baby boy hospitalised with meningococcal
A three-month-old boy is being treated for meningococcal in Tasmania – the state’s third case of the potentially deadly disease in a fortnight.
The state’s health department does not believe the case is linked to two others last week, including one which resulted in the death of a 16-year-old girl.
The boy is in a stable condition in Royal Hobart Hospital after arriving on Thursday night, director of public health Dr Mark Veitch said in a statement on Friday.
Authorities said a public health response had begun as a result of the latest case, with antibiotics being provided to family and close contacts.
The new case follows the death of Hobart teen Sarah Rose Beltz last Thursday after having contracted the disease.
Three days later, a 20-year-old man was struck down with meningococcal but has since been released from hospital, according to the ABC.
The symptoms of meningococcal disease can include fever, severe headache, confusion, severe muscle pain and rash.
Health authorities warn babies and infants may not have these symptoms, but can appear to be unsettled or drowsy, pale or blotchy, or become “floppy” and refuse to eat.
Anyone who rapidly becomes unusually and severely unwell, particularly if they present any of those symptoms, is advised to seek emergency medical care.
