Meningitis outbreak latest: Hundreds of masked Kent university students queue for antibiotics

He also said in some but not all cases, there may a rash that doesn’t disappear.

But he stressed every case is different and not all signs and symptoms will appear for everyone.

He said Early signs and symptoms of meningitis [are] easily confused with everyday stuff like flu and hangover,” he added.

He urged anyone who feels unwell in the Kent area to make sure they have someone looking out for them.

The University of Kent has cancelled all in-person assessments and exams taking place this week following the meningitis outbreak.

“We recognise that this is a very sad and worrying time for our community and we are doing everything we can to offer advice and support,” it says.

“This is a regional public health matter and not specific to the university. The response is being led by the UKHSA and we are working with them and partners as the situation unfolds.”

The university says it has contacted all students and staff “to ensure they have all the latest advice and support they need”.

A GP surgery in the Kent town of Whitstable, around 20 minutes from Canterbury, has told people to stay away if they have potential symptoms of meningitis.

“Please attend your nearest A&E department immediately,” it said.

Andrew Preston, a University of Bath professor who specialises in bacterial pathogenesis, said it was possible that a new strain is behind the outbreak, or that the cases stemmed from one infection event.

He told Newsmen that he and a colleague could not recall an outbreak “of this size and of this speed for quite a few years”.

Preston said it was possible – with about 73% of the population vaccinated against the disease – that a large number of unvaccinated individuals had happened to be in the same room.

“It is possible you just happen to get a large number of unvaccinated people in one room it could spread, but why you have high levels of the disease in the room is unclear,” he said.

Preston said it would take several days for testing of the bacteria that had infected the patients in hospital to be completed.