Hugoton Middle School Student Diagnosed with Bacterial Meningitis

HUGOTON, Kan. (KWCH) A Hugoton Middle School student has been diagnosed with bacterial meningitis.

In an open letter to parents on the school’s website, school officials say they learned about the issue late Wednesday afternoon.

Bacterial meningitis presents flu-like symptoms for three to seven days after exposure.

The symptoms of meningitis infection may be sudden onset of fever, headache, and stiff neck.

Bacterial meningitis is contagious and spreads through person-to-person contact.

Several strains of meningitis are preventable through vaccines.

The district encourages students to take the following precautions to prevent meningitis:

• Wash your hands
• Don’t share drinks, food, straws, eating utensils, lip balm, etc.
• Cover your mouth when you sneeze or cough
• Stay up to date on Vaccines