Protest death sparks meningitis concern
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MIAMI, Florida (AP) -- A volunteer medic who treated injured demonstrators at a free trade meeting last week died Wednesday of bacterial meningitis, sparking a health investigation to determine whether others were exposed.
The Centers for Disease Control and Prevention said Wednesday that no other cases had been confirmed. About 40 to 45 people who had close contact with the victim were given antibiotics, said CDC spokesman Llelwyn Grant.
"We just don't know at this time how far-reaching this will be," Grant said.
Neisseria meningitis, spread through respiratory droplets, can be fatal in up to 20 percent of all untreated cases, but the CDC spokesman said it probably would not be spread in a crowd simply through breathing.
The meningitis victim, a 23-year-old New Jersey man, was not identified by authorities, but protest organizers said it was Jordan Feder. Feder treated protesters who had been sprayed with tear gas and pepper spray, his friend Patrick McKale said.
The victim had been hospitalized in Raleigh, North Carolina, since Monday, said Dr. Jean-Marie Maillard, an epidemiologist for the North Carolina Department of Health and Human Services.
Symptoms of meningitis usually appear within four days and can include fever, headache, nausea, vomiting, a stiff neck, rash, confusion, sleepiness and discomfort while looking into bright light.
Also Wednesday, protesters showed a videotape in which police in riot gear trampled a protester and shot rubber bullets at an attorney who had her back turned.
In the final days of the talks, some of the thousands of demonstrators threw objects and fired slingshots at officers. Police hit protesters with batons, zapped them with stun guns and dispersed them with gas and sprays.
The video depicted scuffles between police and protesters, and showed demonstrators with bloody faces.
The AFL-CIO and civil rights groups have accused the police of abusing demonstrators and arresting them without cause. More than 200 people were arrested during the talks.
Miami police, who have defended their actions, did not return several calls Wednesday afternoon seeking comment.
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