With an 11 and 15 year old, we’re not taking any chances on the meningitis front. If you read Sunday’s editorial page and saw the letter from Jennifer Corrigan of the National Meningitis Association, you know of what I speak.

The NMA apparently spends its time searching the Web for reports of Meningitis outbreaks. She found one on Friday after we reported the case of the Forest Glen Middle Schooler who was diagnosed with the life-threatening condition. They then try to spread the work in the affected community about vaccination.

Corrigan noted that the CDC in February extended the list of those who should be vaccinated from college freshmen living in dorms, to 11- and 12-year-olds entering middle school and 15-year-olds entering high school.

I had a close friend growing up nearly die from meningitis at 18 so we’re taking our kids this week for vaccinations.

Health officials reported on Friday that another case of meningitis had been uncovered. My wife noticed something in both our coverage and that of the other newspaper that said would concern her if she were the parent of one of the victims.

Both reports said that officials believed the Forest Glen victim and the other victim had contact outside of school.

They then went on to report something to the effect of the following: This illness is spread by close contact with an individual having meningococcal infection.

Close contact includes activities such as kissing and sharing drinking glasses, eating utensils, cigarettes, or toothbrushes.

She said it implied that the two victims had been kissing. &uot;If I were the parent of one of them I’d be suing me a newspaper or two,&uot; she said.

While that may be a bit of stretch since neither victim was identified, it was a little too close for comfort for me.