Ghana Health Service issues alert on meningitis
The Deputy Director in Charge of Surveillance at the Ghana Health Service (GHS), Dr Dennis Odai Laryea, has disclosed that the risk of meningitis has increased in the country.
This is due to the current dry season in the country.
According to him, the common symptoms of meningitis are sore throat, headache, fever, general bodily pains and others.
Dr Laryea urged the public to report to the nearest health facility if they experience the above symptoms to ensure early diagnosis of possible disease cases.
He warned that a delay in seeking proper medical care until neck stiffness may worsen the infection.
“It’s a disease that can kill. So, it is not a disease that should be taken lightly. Some lose their hearing because of meningitis,” Dr Laryea said.
“You can get severe complications. So if you start getting fever, sore throat, headache, have some difficulty looking at light, and neck stiffness, report to the nearest health facility and be attended to,” he advised.
Many pathogens, including bacteria, fungi or viruses, can cause meningitis.
WHO estimates that one in six persons who contract bacterial meningitis die, while one in five persons who contract meningitis, which is about 20 per cent, are left with long-lasting disability.
The disease is transmitted from person to person through droplets of respiratory or throat secretions through coughing, sneezing and kissing.
The average incubation period is four days but can range between two and ten days.
In April 2020, an outbreak of the disease in the Upper West Region affected 258, of which 43 died.
Health authorities said although the outbreak of meningitis in the region was an annual occurrence, that year’s was difficult to deal with since it was a new strain of the disease.