A University of Minnesota student from Madison died Thursday after a two-day stint of meningitis. Kristin Marx was admitted to a Minneapolis hospital Tuesday after telling her sorority sisters she was feeling ill. Meningococcal meningitis is a bacterial disease manifested in symptoms such as headaches, confusion, vomiting, and fevers. The disease can be spread through exchanging bodily fluids such as by sharing drinking glasses. The disease strikes when normally harmless bacteria living in the nose and throat invade the bloodstream.
A 20-year old UW student died of meningitis this past November, and deaths caused by meningitis were reported last year at other university campuses across the state, including UW-Whitewater, UW-Eau Claire and UW-River Falls.
The disease does not pose a health threat to the general student population, according to University Health Services epidemiologist Craig Roberts.
“The only people at risk are those who had intimate contact with the student, such as a girlfriend, friends or roommates,” Craig said.
