RUTHERFORD COUNTY, Tenn. – A letter was sent to parents at a Rutherford County middle school after a Middle Tennessee State University practicum student notified the school system that he was being treated for meningitis symptoms.
The unidentified student worked with a small group of students at Rockvale Middle School. He began showing symptoms on Sunday, October 14, but had not been at the school since Thursday, October 11.
The Health Department has not been notified of a confirmed case of meningitis; however, the school system sent the letter as a precaution.
If it is meningitis, the exact type has not been determined.
No students have been reported to have shown any symptoms. The letter instructs parents to monitor their children, and keep them home from school and take them to a doctor if they are sick.
The different types of meningitis include bacterial, viral, fungal, parasitic, and non-infectious. Bacterial meningitis can be life-threatening and is contagious. Viral meningitis is caused by viruses, and is serious, but rarely fatal, according to the Centers for Disease Control.
Fungal meningitis is not contagious. A deadly outbreak of fungal meningitis linked to tainted medicine from a compounding pharmacy in Massachusetts has killed 15 people nationwide, including six in Tennessee.
