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Pneumonia, not meningitis, likely killed woman February 11, 2002 Posted: 10:22 AM EST (1522 GMT)
see also: http://www.cnn.com/2002/US/02/10/hotel.quarantine/
CHERRY HILL, New Jersey (CNN) -- Medical authorities said Sunday they suspected that a woman attending a convention in suburban Philadelphia died of pulmonary bacteria pneumonia -- and not meningitis, as initially thought.
Joanne Hemstreet, 45, of Kingston, Massachusetts, died early Sunday at Kennedy Memorial Hospital in Cherry Hill, New Jersey, according to hospital officials, at least four days after coming do
wn with flu-like symptoms.
"We do
n't know the exact cause of her demise at this time, though ... this looks like a case of Pneumococcal pneumonia with a very severe complication," said Dr. David Condoluci, the hospital's chief of infectious diseases.
The hospital admitted six women and one man staying at the same Hilton Hotel in Cherry Hill, about 10 miles southeast of Philadelphia.
Five suffered from flu-like symptoms and two from pneumonia, but none had the same severe form of pneumonia that killed Hemstreet, according to medical authorities. All were in stable condition Sunday.
The hotel in Cherry Hill, New Jersey, was quarantined for eight hours Sunday.
"Most of these cases would probably not be admitted under normal circumstances, but they're being admitted for observation because of what's happened here, and [for] treatment until we have a little better idea of what's happening," Condoluci said.
Hemstreet, one of 400 Cendant Mortgage employees attending their annual national sales meeting, was already suffering from headache, fever, chills, vomiting and shortness of breath when she checked into the hotel Wednesday, said Condoluci.
On Saturday afternoon she told co-workers she felt worse and retired to her room. She was taken to the hospital by ambulance around 8:15 p.m. ET, the hospital said in a statement.
Over the next four or five hours, she developed a rash over her entire body, her blood pressure dropped and she went into shock before dying at 3:14 a.m. Sunday, Condoluci said.
Doctors initially believed Hemstreet's death was caused by an infection of pneumococcus or meningococcus bacteria, said hospital spokeswoman Nicole Pensiero.
Meningococcus bacteria can cause meningitis -- or the often fatal swelling of the brain -- as well as pneumonia, arthritis and bacteremia, or bacteria in the blood. Transmitted by coughing, sneezing, nasal discharge and saliva, it takes one to 10 days for symptoms to appear after exposure.
Pneumococcal disease -- caused by the bacterium Streptococcus pneumoniae, or pneumococcus -- is the leading cause of death from vaccine-preventable bacterial disease in the United States. The bacteria can cause pneumonia, blood stream infection and meningitis.
Hoping to stem a potential meningitis outbreak, hotel officials quarantined the building from 2 a.m. to 10 a.m. ET Sunday, said Steve Kronic, Hilton's senior vice president. No one had checked in since the hotel reopened, a hotel desk clerk told CNN around 6 p.m.
Authorities urged anyone who had direct contact with Hemstreet, as well as with other hotel guests, to seek medical attention.
At least 84 people treated at Kennedy Memorial Hospital -- including the emergency room staff -- were given prophylactic antibiotics as a precaution, Pensiero said.
While they believed Hemstreet died of an aggressive form of pneumonia, do
ctors said they were still concerned that her rash might have been caused by the type of bacteria that causes meningitis. A definitive diagnosis, they said, should be available Tuesday or Wednesday.
Officials said they were also testing for Legionnaires' disease. The first known cases of this disease broke out in July 1976 during a Pennsylvania American Legion convention at a Philadelphia hotel.
A total of 221 people contracted the illness and 34 died, including 29 Legionnaires or their family members. Symptoms of the pneumonia-like illness begin
appearing two to three days after exposure.
But Condoluci said urine samples taken from the seven hospitalized Cendant Mortgage employees seemed to indicate they had "a flu-like illness," not Legionnaires' disease.
Pneumonia, not meningitis, likely killed woman February 11, 2002 Posted: 10:22 AM EST (1522 GMT)
see also: http://www.cnn.com/2002/US/02/10/hotel.quarantine/
CHERRY HILL, New Jersey (CNN) -- Medical authorities said Sunday they suspected that a woman attending a convention in suburban Philadelphia died of pulmonary bacteria pneumonia -- and not meningitis, as initially thought.
Joanne Hemstreet, 45, of Kingston, Massachusetts, died early Sunday at Kennedy Memorial Hospital in Cherry Hill, New Jersey, according to hospital officials, at least four days after coming do
wn with flu-like symptoms.
"We do
n't know the exact cause of her demise at this time, though ... this looks like a case of Pneumococcal pneumonia with a very severe complication," said Dr. David Condoluci, the hospital's chief of infectious diseases.
The hospital admitted six women and one man staying at the same Hilton Hotel in Cherry Hill, about 10 miles southeast of Philadelphia.
Five suffered from flu-like symptoms and two from pneumonia, but none had the same severe form of pneumonia that killed Hemstreet, according to medical authorities. All were in stable condition Sunday.
The hotel in Cherry Hill, New Jersey, was quarantined for eight hours Sunday.
"Most of these cases would probably not be admitted under normal circumstances, but they're being admitted for observation because of what's happened here, and [for] treatment until we have a little better idea of what's happening," Condoluci said.
Hemstreet, one of 400 Cendant Mortgage employees attending their annual national sales meeting, was already suffering from headache, fever, chills, vomiting and shortness of breath when she checked into the hotel Wednesday, said Condoluci.
On Saturday afternoon she told co-workers she felt worse and retired to her room. She was taken to the hospital by ambulance around 8:15 p.m. ET, the hospital said in a statement.
Over the next four or five hours, she developed a rash over her entire body, her blood pressure dropped and she went into shock before dying at 3:14 a.m. Sunday, Condoluci said.
Doctors initially believed Hemstreet's death was caused by an infection of pneumococcus or meningococcus bacteria, said hospital spokeswoman Nicole Pensiero.
Meningococcus bacteria can cause meningitis -- or the often fatal swelling of the brain -- as well as pneumonia, arthritis and bacteremia, or bacteria in the blood. Transmitted by coughing, sneezing, nasal discharge and saliva, it takes one to 10 days for symptoms to appear after exposure.
Pneumococcal disease -- caused by the bacterium Streptococcus pneumoniae, or pneumococcus -- is the leading cause of death from vaccine-preventable bacterial disease in the United States. The bacteria can cause pneumonia, blood stream infection and meningitis.
Hoping to stem a potential meningitis outbreak, hotel officials quarantined the building from 2 a.m. to 10 a.m. ET Sunday, said Steve Kronic, Hilton's senior vice president. No one had checked in since the hotel reopened, a hotel desk clerk told CNN around 6 p.m.
Authorities urged anyone who had direct contact with Hemstreet, as well as with other hotel guests, to seek medical attention.
At least 84 people treated at Kennedy Memorial Hospital -- including the emergency room staff -- were given prophylactic antibiotics as a precaution, Pensiero said.
While they believed Hemstreet died of an aggressive form of pneumonia, do
ctors said they were still concerned that her rash might have been caused by the type of bacteria that causes meningitis. A definitive diagnosis, they said, should be available Tuesday or Wednesday.
Officials said they were also testing for Legionnaires' disease. The first known cases of this disease broke out in July 1976 during a Pennsylvania American Legion convention at a Philadelphia hotel.
A total of 221 people contracted the illness and 34 died, including 29 Legionnaires or their family members. Symptoms of the pneumonia-like illness begin
appearing two to three days after exposure.
But Condoluci said urine samples taken from the seven hospitalized Cendant Mortgage employees seemed to indicate they had "a flu-like illness," not Legionnaires' disease.