GREENVILLE, S.C. —
Some children across the Upstate are getting very sick and even dying from meningitis. A growing number of parents are concerned.
While health officials tell us it's impossible to know how many total meningitis cases we've had around South Carolina this year, doctors tell us the best way to protect against it is by getting vaccinated.
Meningitis is when bacteria, a virus, or in rare cases a fungus causes swelling around the membrane that protects the brain and spinal cord.
"You will develop neck stiffness," said Dr. Stephen Jones with Parkside Pediatrics. "Light sensitivity, crushing headache. And then it can progress very rapidly and lead to bad outcomes, including even death."
It can affect anyone at any age — families, people living in dorms or barracks, or sports teams. Someone could carry the bacteria that cause meningitis and not know it.
"A fair number of people carry this, this bacteria in their nasal passages. And they don't get sick from it," said Jones.
It spreads through close contact with other people, from being in confined spaces, to kissing, to sharing drinks, lip gloss or vapes.
"You know, death is a possibility. But then there's also other significant concerns. You could lose a limb. You could have brain damage. You could have loss of hearing," Jones said.
Jones said we've seen an increase of certain strains that can be tracked nationwide over the last year and a half.
"I think we had a vaccine high during the pandemic, and since then we've seen a decline in vaccination rates," said Jones, saying all vaccination rates are down.
So what's the best way to protect against this sometimes deadly condition?
Teach your kids not to share drinks or food with other people. If your kid is sick, keep them home.
"So, I do recommend for people who have children to make sure that they discuss vaccines with their primary care physician," said Dr. Anna Burch with the South Carolina Department of Public Health.
Across our region, parents are deciding what's best for their kids.
"I think for us it was the obvious choice," said Danielle Schoviak, who says she got her son vaccinated.
"He plays travel soccer," she said. "So we travel with a lot of the kids. It's just important to, again, do what we can to protect our kids."
While most strains can be vaccinated against, enterovirus meningitis, a form spread by a virus, has no vaccine.
Oftentimes, Burch says, it surfaces as a bad summertime cold. But in some cases, especially for the immunocompromised, it can have life-altering impacts.
"We are seeing enterovirus everywhere," Burch said. "And I can just tell you that because working in the hospital, we have tons of cases right now. It is the season for enterovirus. Also, things that parents can do is making sure that their kids are washing their hands, that they're, again, not sharing utensils, not sharing drinks, not sharing foods with their friends, not sharing the lip gloss, those kind of things."