Meningitis kills 718 in Burkina Faso

[April 23, 2010]  OUAGADOUGOU, Burkina Faso (AP) -- A strain of meningitis that has rarely caused big outbreaks in Africa has killed more than 700 people in Burkina Faso this year.

Health Minister Seydou Bouda says the strain, called X, killed 718 people out of 5,118 cases in the West African country since January.

Bouda told a press conference Thursday he hopes the cases will decline in coming weeks. Bouda says there is no vaccine for the strain but patients can be cured by antibiotics. Those affected by X have the same symptoms as other strains: sudden fever, headaches, and vomiting.

[Associated Press]

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