UAE doctors call for greater meningitis awareness as former Australian cricket star battles disease

The UAE public have been urged to improve their awareness of the risks of meningitis, after a celebrated Australian former cricketer contracted the potentially deadly disease.

Fellow cricketers have expressed hopes that Damien Martyn, part of Australia’s highly successful cricket team of the early 2000s, will recover. It was reported this week that he had been put into an induced coma.

Adam Gilchrist, a former international teammate of Martyn’s, said the former batter, 54, who fell ill on Boxing Day, has shown “positive signs” since being admitted to hospital in Queensland, on Australia’s Gold Coast. “He is a fine player, terrific fellow. I just hope he can continue his recovery,” Gilchrist was quoted as saying by Australian media.

Dr Nishara Asiger, an internal medicine specialist at Aster Cedars Hospital and Clinic in Jebel Ali, said meningitis could strike unexpectedly. “The Damien Martyn case highlights that meningitis can affect even healthy adults. Public awareness is crucial in controlling the spread,” she said.

A child receives a meningitis vaccine in California. Bacterial meningitis can attack the brain and spinal cord. Reuters

What is meningitis?

Meningitis is an inflammation of the membranes that cover the brain and spinal cord and, when it progresses rapidly, it can become life threatening, Dr Asiger said. Viral forms of the condition are more common, but tend to be less severe and will often resolve themselves without treatment.

The rarer bacterial types typically cause more severe symptoms and patients may have to go into hospital, where treatments include antibiotics, fluids and oxygen.

Dr Asiger described vaccination as “the cornerstone” of efforts to curb meningitis cases. She said people in the UAE should ensure that they and their family members are vaccinated, while also avoiding sharing personal items and washing their hands regularly. She also recommended avoiding contact with the sick.

According to the UK’s National Health Service, sneezing, coughing and kissing can spread infections that cause meningitis. “Due to strong vaccination programmes and excellent healthcare standards, meningitis is relatively uncommon in the UAE,” Dr Asiger said.

Vaccination has reduced risks in many countries, although deaths still occur, with infants, children and young adults often most in danger.

Prof Paul Hunter, from the University of East Anglia in the UK, has published scientific papers on meningitis and treated patients with the disease when he was practising as a doctor.