Eighth meningococcal case in WA confirmed

The Department of Health has confirmed the eighth case of meningococcal disease in WA this year. Source: AAP

A WEST Australian child was diagnosed with meningococcal disease in the past week but has since been discharged from hospital, the Department of Health has confirmed.

The department says it has provided the child's close contacts with information, and, where appropriate, antibiotics to reduce the chance of contagion.

The disease, a bacterial infection of the blood and the membranes that line the spinal cord and brain, is rare and life-threatening.

The department said meningococcal bacteria were carried harmlessly in the back of the nose and throat by about 10-20 per cent of the population at any given time and it was in only very rare instances that the bacteria invaded the bloodstream and caused serious infections.

The child is the eighth case of the disease reported in the state so far this year.

In February, a young child who had contracted the disease died.

The department said the incidence of meningococcal disease had decreased significantly in the state over the past decade, with around 20 to 25 cases reported each year, down from a peak of 86 in 2000.

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