Following the suspicion of meningitis in a Burgenland guard recruit of the military, the affected conscript has died in a hospital. A military spokesperson confirmed to APA a corresponding report from oe24.at. According to this, brain death had already been determined in the 21-year-old at the end of last week, and life-support machines were turned off. He had been treated in the hospital since Tuesday and was recently in a coma.

Recruit Died in Vienna

The recruit had just completed his basic training, received the new uniform and equipment, and would have now come to parade drill. He had been with the guard since January 7. A week ago, he reported with very high fever to the medical ward of the Maria-Theresien-Barracks in Vienna. Accompanied by a paramedic, he was transferred to the Medical Center East in Stammersdorf. Subsequently, he was brought to the Landstraße Clinic. He has now died there. "We were informed of his death today," explained the spokesperson, who did not provide exact details on the man's time of death.

The man apparently did not take advantage of the military's vaccination offer, as stated in military circles. Since no other case has occurred in the military in recent weeks, it is assumed that the infection came from outside.

What is Meningitis?

Meningitis is a notifiable disease. The transmission of the pathogen occurs exclusively from person to person. According to the Agency for Health and Food Safety (AGES), the risk of contracting it is low. Even with direct contact with an affected person, it very rarely leads to illness. The pathogens can only survive outside the human body for a few seconds. Nevertheless, the military had renewed the vaccination offer to soldiers in the immediate vicinity of the Burgenlander, in addition to the preventive administration of antibiotics.

(APA/Red)

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