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Fourth Meningitis B Case Confirmed in Reading Cluster

Officials say the infections trace to one social network, posing low risk to the wider public.

Overview

  • UKHSA confirmed Tuesday that a fourth meningococcal case involves a Westwood Farm Junior School pupil who is recovering well.
  • All four infections are Meningitis B and linked to the same wider social network, with lab testing indicating a strain distinct from the recent Kent and Dorset outbreaks.
  • Public health teams have traced close contacts and are offering preventive antibiotics to those at risk, without recommending treatment for entire schools.
  • One patient, Henley College sixth‑former Lewis Waters, died last week, while the other cases are receiving care or recovering, according to officials.
  • Local interest in MenB vaccination has surged as experts revisit teenage coverage, since the NHS offers MenB to babies but most people over age two must obtain it privately.