Students have started receiving a meningitis B vaccine following a fatal outbreak of the infection in Kent.
Around 5,000 students at the Canterbury campus of the University of Kent are being offered the vaccine, along with courses of antibiotics, reports RTE.
The move follows the deaths of two students and the investigation of 18 additional cases by the UK Health Security Agency after an outbreak linked to a nightclub.
Five further meningitis cases have now been identified in Kent, bringing the total under investigation by health authorities to 20, reports RTE.
Of these, nine have been laboratory-confirmed, while 11 remain under review.
Six of the confirmed infections have been identified as the meningitis B strain, reports RTE.
Large queues have formed outside a sports hall as students wait to receive their vaccinations.
Divine Nweze, an architecture student, was among the first to arrive for the jab, reports RTE.
He said: “As soon as I got the email, my parents just told me, get up and get my vaccine. They won’t even let me go home because of what’s going on.
“The vaccine rollout should have been done earlier, but now that it’s available, I feel like it is all getting done, so that’s the main thing,”, reports RTE.
He added that his parents would allow him to return home once he has been vaccinated.
It is still unclear how students who have already left campus will access the vaccine, although it is understood they may be able to receive it through their GP, reports RTE.
A letter sent to University of Kent students stated that the MenB vaccine will continue to be available on campus throughout the week.
“If you live in Canterbury campus halls of resident but have already returned home, arrangements are currently being developed to ensure that you can receive the vaccines nearer to home – further information on how you can receive the vaccination will be provided in due course,”, reports RTE.
The two-dose vaccination course is being administered alongside antibiotics as an “additional precautionary measure to help protect students from becoming seriously unwell with meningitis if you are exposed in the future”, the letter said.
GPs across the country have now been instructed to prescribe antibiotics to anyone who attended Club Chemistry in Canterbury between 5 and 7 March, as well as students from the University of Kent, reports RTE.
This step aims to ensure that those who have already left campus can still access appropriate treatment.
So far, more than 2,500 doses have been administered to students, close contacts, and others, including some who visited Club Chemistry between 5 and 7 March, reports RTE.
Health officials expect the number of cases to rise, as the incubation period for the infection ranges from two to 14 days.
Experts have described the outbreak as unprecedented due to the high number of cases emerging within a short timeframe, reports RTE.
Health authorities have emphasised that people should not skip antibiotics if they are prescribed them, noting that a single dose of Ciprofloxacin can reduce the risk of meningitis within a household by around 80% to 90%.
Experts said many of those affected had attended Club Chemistry in Canterbury between 5 March and 7 March, reports RTE.
The UK Health Security Agency said all 15 reported cases required hospitalisation, with four confirmed as meningitis B.
Laboratory scientists are urgently investigating whether the outbreak may involve a mutated strain of the menB bacteria, reports RTE.
The genome of the identified menB strain is undergoing full sequencing to determine whether it differs from known variants.
It will also be tested against existing vaccines, although experts have urged eligible individuals to get vaccinated, reports RTE.
The UKHSA has reassured the public that there are sufficient NHS supplies of the menB vaccine, despite reports of shortages in private pharmacies.
Regarding NHS stock, a UKHSA spokeswoman said: “There are sufficient menB vaccine stocks. We will work with local resilience partners to ensure effective distribution,”, reports RTE.
All reported cases so far have been linked to Kent, according to the UKHSA.
At least one infected individual with links to Kent was treated at a hospital in London, reports RTE.
Officials said this person had “no community contacts in London”, suggesting the risk of wider spread in the capital is low.
Meanwhile, French authorities confirmed that a person hospitalised in France with links to the Kent outbreak is now in a stable condition, reports RTE.
The French Ministry of Health said no additional cases connected to the Kent outbreak have been identified in France.
During Prime Minister’s Questions, Keir Starmer offered his condolences, reports RTE.
He said: “Our deepest condolences are with the families and friends of the two young people who have died following the outbreak of meningitis B in Kent. Others are seriously ill. This will be a deeply difficult time for their loved ones,”, reports RTE.
Health Secretary Wes Streeting told BBC Breakfast: “What’s worried us about the Canterbury outbreak is the pace and extent of the spread of the disease.
“That is unprecedented, and that’s why we are being so proactive in the provision of antibiotics, because they’re an effective treatment, but also standing up vaccination at a pace and in a way that we wouldn’t normally do.
“I hope that that will give some reassurance to people,”, reports RTE.
Asked whether there were concerns about the outbreak spreading to other parts of the country as students leave Canterbury, Mr Streeting said: “No, and lots of students from Kent have already gone home.
“It’s exam week at the university this week, so there are still quite a few students around sitting their exams.
“Lots of students will have gone home, and that’s fine. That’s okay.
“What we need people to do is to think through in terms of their individual situations – were they at Club Chemistry on March 5, 6 or 7? If the answer to that question is yes, the sensible thing to do is to access antibiotics,”, reports RTE.
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