Children get a shot at stopping meningitis

Mom of dead boy urges earlier warnings

By CINDY HORSWELL
Copyright 2003 Houston Chronicle

CLEVELAND -- As mass vaccinations began Wednesday in Cleveland, a mother expressed relief to see other youngsters being protected against the deadly meningococcal disease that killed her 2-year-old son.

But Jana Whitmire was also angry that authorities had not issued an earlier warning when two other Cleveland children contracted the illness, one in October, long before her son's death on Jan. 7.

"They didn't publicize it. They didn't tell anybody. I could have done something. I might have known then that my baby wasn't just sick with the cold or flu," said Whitmire, as tears spilled down her cheeks.

Long lines coiled around Cleveland Junior High School's gym on Wednesday as the Texas Department of Health began two days of administering the vaccination shots to children ages 2 to 19, within the Cleveland Independent School District boundaries.

About 3,500 youngsters are expected to be vaccinated by the time the program ends at 8 tonight, said Doug McBride, spokesman for the Health Department. Officials were asking for $20 donations for the shots, but turned nobody away.

The last outbreak in the Houston area occurred two years ago and resulted in about 50,000 inoculations in Conroe, New Caney and Humble. The Centers for Disease Control and Prevention recommends vaccinations when the rate of the illness exceeds 10 cases of the same strain per 100,000 population within a three-month period.

The ratio was exceeded in the less-populated Cleveland area when Whitmire's son became the third child to contract the illness, officials said. The other two included an 8-month-old boy and 8-year-old girl from Northside Elementary. They have fully recovered, authorities said.

The Cleveland school district was unaware that the girl had been hospitalized with the serious bacterial infection until after she was well and had returned to school, said Jim Nardone, Cleveland's deputy superintendent.

"We were not trying to hide anything from the public. We just followed what the Health Department told us to do," he said.

Nardone said the district had no information about the 8-month-old boy and Whitmire's son, Kennon Patton Jr., because they were not yet attending school.

After health officials notified the district about the two children and recommended vaccinations, the district immediately sent home a letter to parents on Tuesday.

McBride stressed that the vaccinations are being done only as a precaution because one's chance of contracting the illness is still "extremely rare." In 2002, the state recorded 119 cases.

"It usually happens in the winter months every year. It is very sporadic, only one or two cases here or there," McBride said.

A mandatory statewide vaccination program would cost millions and not be a wise move, he said.

"The vaccine is only effective for three to five years and a second dose, if you really needed it then, is often not as successful," he said.

The bacteria are spread through direct contact with infected saliva or phlegm. However, McBride noted that 15 percent of the population carries the bacteria in their throat or nose without being harmed.

Covering the mouth and nose when coughing or sneezing and frequent hand washing can reduce the risk of infection.

Whitmire believes parents should be kept better informed and make their own decision as to whether their child should be vaccinated.

The bacteria, which attacks either the lining of the brain or the blood stream, can act quickly and cause serious impairment. About a fourth of those who contract the disease can die or suffer serious health problems, officials said.

Whitmire said her son had a slight fever after he went to bed and was nearly dead in her arms the next morning.

"It's so easy to mistake the symptoms for a cold. He was sleeping in our bed and threw up once in the middle of the night. I was planning to take him to the doctor in the morning," she said.

"But when I woke up, my son wasn't there any more. His eyes were staring off into space and not focused and he was gasping for air."

By then, a purple rash began to spread all over his body, which is one of the serious symptoms of the illness. Others symptoms include fever, headache, stiff neck and vomiting.

Whitmire and her husband, Kennon Patton Sr., drove the child to the hospital about one minute away and watched the emergency teams unsuccessfully try to revive him.

"His heart was the last to go. They massaged it about 30 minutes," she said. "I wish they had buried me, not him. I want to tell every parent not to think they can treat it themselves."

Delores Martinez Conreras, who brought her 15-year-old son to be vaccinated on Wednesday, said, "I think they ought to make it mandatory. It seems as the years go by that there are more and more outbreaks. I think parents would be willing to pay."

Brett Farely, who brought his two children for vaccinations, agreed. "How many have to die before they do something about it?" he asked.

Cindy Webb, who brought her daughter for a vaccination, said she believed the state should have vaccinated Cleveland residents when it did the adjacent areas in Montgomery County two years ago. "Should have done it then, and the little boy wouldn't be dead today," she said.

Families can seek the vaccination from their personal physicians at any time, authorities said.