Meningitis bacteria to blame for Oregon
student's death
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[February 21, 2015]
By Courtney Sherwood
PORTLAND, Ore. (Reuters) - A bacterial
infection related to meningitis is to blame for the death of a
University of Oregon student-athlete who was found unresponsive in her
dorm room earlier this week, public health officials said on Friday.
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Freshman Lauren Jones, 18, was found unconscious on Tuesday and
declared dead at a nearby hospital. An initial autopsy did not offer
conclusive results, but tests completed on Friday confirmed that
meningococcemia caused her death, Lane County Public Health
spokesman Jason Davis said in a statement.
Jones was the fourth student at the school confirmed to have been
infected with meningococcemia, a bacterial precursor to meningitis,
since an outbreak began earlier this year. The other three students
are all recovering, according to a statement issued by the
university on Friday.
The university also announced plans for a "full-scale vaccination
program" beginning the first week of March, though it had already
been offering vaccinations upon request.
![](http://archives.lincolndailynews.com/2015/Feb/21/images/ads/current/napa_bch1-3108.png) Davis said the Lane County Public Health department is not offering
meningococcemia vaccinations to the general public as risk of
contracting the disease is "extremely low" for people not associated
with the school.
Meningococcemia spreads through close personal contact or prolonged
exposure, and outbreaks of the bacterial infection are relatively
rare, he told Reuters.
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But the close living quarters of university dormitories can create
opportunities for the infection to spread, and several college
campus outbreaks are typically reported every year.
The University of Oregon said in its statement that increased
clinical staff will be available to offer vaccines to students next
week, ahead of a more concerted vaccination effort that will begin
in two weeks.
(Editing by Curtis Skinner)
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