Vinalhaven confirms viral meningitis case

VINALHAVEN – Health officials are monitoring several sick children after one confirmed case of viral meningitis, officials said Thursday.

The island’s doctor has notified the state Bureau of Health that two dozen people, including a number of high school students, have called the health center to complain of flulike symptoms.

The single patient confirmed to have viral meningitis was taken to a hospital, said Dr. Dora Mills, director of the Maine Bureau of Health.

None of the others suffering from a variety of symptoms – fevers, runny noses and diarrhea – required treatment on the mainland, Mills said.

School officials on the island canceled a weekend soccer game and did not let students leave the island to attend a math competition.