PUTRAJAYA, 15 May 2009: The Health Ministry today confirmed that a trainee of the Police Training Centre in Jempol, Negeri Sembilan, had died of meningitis at the Tuanku Ja’afar Hospital in Seremban yesterday.
Director-General of Health Tan Sri Dr Mohd Ismail Merican said the post mortem on the trainee showed that he had Acute Pericarditis and the ministry was investigating the source of the disease.
“Two cases are being treated at the isolation ward of the Jempol Hospital. Their condition is stable,” he said in a statement here.
Mohd Ismail also said 29 trainees were under observation by a medical team and anyone showing symptoms of the disease would be referred to the Jempol Hospital immediately.
He said that so far 166 people who had come into contact with the cases had been identified and administered the prophylaxis antibiotic, and preventive and control measures had been taken to contain the disease.
On the situation at the Road Transport Department (JPJ) Academy in Malacca where the first outbreak of meningitis was recorded early this month, 32 cases are still being treated at the isolation ward of the Melaka Hospital, he said.
He said 10 of the 42 cases under treatment yesterday had been discharged.
Mohd Ismail said people living in the vicinity of the JPJ Academy as well as students schooling nearby should not be overly concerned as the disease was only spread when one came into contact with the air droplets from coughs or sneezes.
He said good ventilation was one way of preventing contracting meningitis. — Bernama
