Political Quotes

“Approximately 3,000 cases of meningitis occur each year in the United States. Ten to thirteen percent of patients die, despite receiving antibiotics early in the illness. Of those who survive, an additional 10 percent have severe after-effects of the disease, including mental retardation, hearing loss, and loss of limbs. On September 30, 1997, the American College Health Association... released a statement recommending that 'college health services take a more proactive role in alerting students and their parents about the dangers of meningococcal disease.' Studies undertaken by the Centers for Disease Control and Prevention indicate that freshman college students, particularly those who live in dormitories, constitute a group that are at a modestly increased rate for meningococcal disease. Meningitis is an infection of the fluid of a person's spinal cord and the fluid that surrounds the brain. The disease is usually caused by a viral or bacterial infection. The bacteria are very common and live naturally in the back of the nose and throat. They normally spread between people in close and prolonged contact by coughing, sneezing and intimate kissing. Children under 5, teenagers, young adults, and the elderly are most at risk of contracting the disease.”