ACT Health has issued a warning for people who attended the Spilt Milk festival in Canberra last weekend to be alert to the symptoms of meningococcal disease after a case was detected at Canberra Hospital.

“There is a case of meningococcal disease in an individual who attended the Spilt Milk Festival,” ACT Health said on Saturday.

Close contacts of the individual are being identified and contacted directly but people who were at Exhibition Park in Canberra on November 26 should be alert to symptoms of the disease and “act immediately” if they appear, the health authority said.

One person who attended Splendour in the Grass in July died with meningococcal disease.Credit:Getty

Meningococcal is a serious disease that can cause infection of the membranes around the brain and spinal cord and infection of the blood – both of which are severe infections that can lead to death.

The case was detected in a festivalgoer at the Canberra date of Spilt Milk, an annual music festival held in Canberra and Ballarat and established in 2016. This year, an additional date was scheduled for the Gold Coast, with headlining acts including Flume, The Wombats, Spacey Jane and G-Flip.

ACT Chief Health Officer Dr Kerryn Coleman said meningococcal disease was uncommon but could be severe and lead to life-long complications or death.

Symptoms include sudden onset of fever, headache, neck stiffness, joint pain, a rash of red-purple spots or bruises, dislike of bright lights, and nausea and vomiting.

While the rash is among the more well-known symptoms, Coleman said it “may not be present at all, or may come very late in the illness,” and not all the symptoms may appear at the same time.

Symptoms in young children include irritability, difficulty waking, high-pitched crying and refusal to eat.

Coleman also said it was possible for people to be asymptomatic but infectious.

“People can carry meningococcal bacteria in their throats and not have symptoms, but pass it on to close contacts,” she said. “If you suspect symptoms of meningococcal disease, please seek medical review immediately.”

While it can have significant consequences, about 5 to 10 per cent of the population carry meningococcal bacteria in their nose and throat at any given time, and few people become unwell as a result.

It is transmitted from person to person through contact with respiratory secretions, but the bacteria is not easily spread and usually requires very close prolonged contact such as deep intimate kissing or living in the same household to be passed between people. It is not easily spread by sharing drinks, food or cigarettes.

People between the ages of 15 and 25 are at the greatest risk of contracting the disease.

Vaccination has made meningococcal disease uncommon, but it has appeared before at a music festival. In August, NSW Health urged patrons of the Splendour in the Grass festival to monitor for symptoms of meningococcal disease, after two revellers contracted the disease and one died.

Vaccinations are provided for free for all children at 12 months of age, adolescents and people of all ages with certain medical conditions, and remains the best way to protect people from the disease.

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