Brooklyn, NY - Meningitis Scare On The Rise

Brooklyn, NY - The city Health Department is quietly sounding the alarm over troubling new meningitis cases in Brooklyn, warning doctors about a bacterial strain of the disease that has already killed four people in less than three months.

Meningitis is an infection of the tissues and fluid that cover the brain and spinal cord, and can be fatal. The bacteria spreads between people in close contact, but victims can be treated with antibiotics if diagnosed early enough.

City officials said the first case was diagnosed Dec. 21 and that a new strain of meningitis is circulating within the community. Officials said the victims range in age 5 to 80. And although the meningococcal meningitis is contagious, city officials said that most of the incidents diagnosed so far appear to be drug-related like from crack, cocaine, heroin, or having been in contact with people who report using these drugs."