Meningitis outbreak declared at Princeton

State health officials have declared a meningitis outbreak at Princeton University after another potential case of the disease surfaced over the weekend.

The New Jersey Department of Health said six confirmed meningococcal cases have been reported at Princeton since March, and a possible seventh case was reported this weekend.

In the most recent incident, a male student developed symptoms on Saturday and is hospitalized, the health department said.

Authorities are awaiting the student's lab results.

A female student was diagnosed with meningitis in October and is recovering. The other five cases occurred between late March and late June.

Meningitis spreads through close contact such as kissing or sharing food and utensils. It can be deadly but is treatable with antibiotics if caught early.

Authorities said all six confirmed cases were caused by the same strain of meningitis, type B. Five of the six students became ill from an identical strain, officials said, though no common link has been identified among the cases. Another student's strain had similar characteristics, but testing limitations prevented officials from determining if it was an exact match.

Meningitis vaccines protect against four different strains of meningococcal disease, but not against type B.

Health officials said the series of cases are considered an outbreak because six students were diagnosed with the same type of meningitis in a short time period. Authorities also hope that declaring an outbreak will raise awareness about the disease.

Symptoms of meningitis include fever, headache, body aches, fatigue, stiff neck, nausea, vomiting and sensitivity to light.