Dr Nopporn Chuenklin, who heads the provincial public health office, yesterday said about 47 people who had been in close contact with the girl were already being treated to prevent them developing serious symptoms should they have been infected.

He said a close watch was being kept over 30 medical staff who also had been given drugs as a precautionary measure.

"As this is a fatal [and contagious] disease, we have to take serious preventative measures," Nopporn said.

The 19-month-old girl lived in Ban Nong Pring in Thung Song district. She was admitted to Thung Song Hospital before being transferred to Maharat Hospital, where she died. Thung Song public health chief Sanit Pattanasilp said no one was sure if the toddler had caught the disease, but lab tests determined she had a streptococcus bacterial infection.

"Up till now, no one else seems to have caught the disease," Nopporn said.

High fever, headaches and a stiff neck are common symptoms of meningitis in anyone more than two years old. These symptoms can develop over several hours or may take one or two days. Other symptoms may include nausea, vomiting, discomfort when looking at bright lights, confusion and sleepiness.

In newborns and infants, the classic symptoms of fever, headache and neck stiffness may be absent or difficult to detect, and the infant may appear only slow or inactive, irritable, sometimes vomit, or simply go off his or her food. As the disease progresses, patients of any age may suffer seizures.

The Nation

Nakhon Si Thammarat