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5000 recruits stretp shots Original Source Link: (May no longer be active)
http://www.miami.com/mld/miamiherald/news/nation/4747843.htmhttp://www.miami.com/mld/miamiherald/news/nation/4747843.htm
Posted on Mon, Dec. 16, 2002
5,000 Marine recruits get strep shots
BY TONY PERRY
Los Angeles Times Service
SAN DIEGO - Amid the worst infectious outbreak in 11 years, more than 5,000 recruits at the Marine Corps Recruit Depot were inoculated Sunday against a bacteria that could be fatal if left untreated.
The inoculations were given as 60 recruits remained hospitalized at the Naval Regional Medical Center in Balboa Park with sore throats, coughing and other symptoms of Group A streptococcal pneumonia. Some will have to drop out of training, officials said.
''This can be the source of fatal pneumonia,'' said Navy Capt. J.D. Malone, director of medical services at the center. ``That's why we're being so aggressive.''
The Strep A outbreak, which struck last week, comes amid an investigation into the deaths of two recruits in three weeks. Officials, however, said that no link has been found between the outbreak and the deaths.
Recruits are given penicillin shots twice during training. The mass inoculation Sunday was the first in 11 years due to Strep A, a bacteria often found to flourish among schoolchildren and college students in close living quarters.
''You're going to get a shot in your left butt cheek, all right?'' Navy corpsman Maricar Vergara said.
''Yes, ma'am,'' came the shouted reply from two-dozen wide-eyed recruits.
Drill instructors stress the need for attention to cleanliness. But problems persist.
''Recruits come in from all over the country and they bring infections from all over the country,'' Malone said.
Marine and Navy officials have yet to determine the cause of two recent training deaths.
Pvt. Neal Edwards, 18, of St. Clair, Mo., died Nov. 24 after collapsing during training on an obstacle course. He played high school football, was reportedly in top-notch health and hoped to become a combat engineer.
Pvt. Samuel J. Bruss, 19, of Kenosha, Wis., died Thursday after survival training at the base swimming pool, where recruits were taught to swim while dressed in full combat gear.
Bruss was an avid outdoorsman and strong swimmer, according to his family. He has an older brother in the Marines serving in the Persian Gulf area.
With 20,000 recruits a year completing basic training at the depot, there have been six deaths since 1995, including one suicide, two fatalities after a 1.5-mile run and one after the obstacle course.
Before the development of antibiotics, Strep A was a scourge of military training camps, leading to large-scale casualties in both world wars.
To stop the spread of the bacteria, all recruits were marched to the base medical facilities where doctors, nurses and corpsmen administered throat swaps, examinations and the inoculations. Recruits with potential allergic reactions were screened for alternate treatment.
Drill instructors, civilian food handlers and others in close contact with the recruits also were given inoculations.
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