Girl recovers after meningitis scare (From Warrington Guardian)

Girl recovers after meningitis scare

A WINSFORD schoolgirl is making a brave recovery at home after a frightening meningitis scare.

Leia Ball, aged seven, spent four days at Leighton Hospital after being diagnosed with probable meningococcal disease, but doctors say she is now in the clear and can return to Handley Hill Primary School soon.

Leia's mum Susan, of Grampian Way, described her shock after her daughter woke up vomiting in the middle of the night nearly a fortnight ago.

She said: "We were absolutely devastated.

"I had no real reason to look for meningitis because Leia was only sick once, but as it happened during the night I took off her pyjama top to clean her up.

"She had a rash on her belly, so I did the glass test where you press a drinking glass against the skin.

"The marks did not go away and that's when I started to worry."

As the Guardian reported last week, Leia and a pupil from the reception class were hospitalised with suspected bacterial meningitis, but education chiefs at Cheshire County Council maintained it was safe for other children to go to school.

Dr Sam Ghebrehewet, from the Cheshire and Merseyside health protection team, said on Friday: "We have had the test results back for the two girls and they were negative.

"The children are doing well now.

"They do not have the clinical features of the disease and should be able to go back to school now because they have been on antibiotics."

Meanwhile, Susan paid tribute to the school and everybody who had offered their support.

She said: "They have all been fantastic, especially Mrs King, the headteacher at Handley Hill.

"She has really, truly been there for us. The other parents have all been wonderful too."

rfraser@guardiangrp.co.uk