RALEIGH, N.C. -- A volunteer medic who treated injured demonstrators at the Free Trade Area of the Americas meeting last week died Wednesday of a strain of bacterial meningitis.
The 23-year-old New Jersey man, whose name was not released by officials, died in Raleigh, N.C., where he had been hospitalized since Monday.
The victim was identified by demonstration organizers as Jordan Feder. He reportedly left the protest early and became ill on his way home, according to a friend.
Feder was an activist and a volunteer medic for demonstrators at the trade talks, according to the Independent Media Center Web site.
Officials have launched an investigation to see if anyone was exposed to meningitis by the man. So far, no other cases have been confirmed in North Carolina or Florida, health officials said.
The victim had contracted Neisseria meningitis, which is transmitted by respiratory droplets. It can be fatal in up to 20 percent of all untreated cases.
Symptoms, which usually appear within four days of being infected, can include fever, headache, nausea, vomiting, a stiff neck, rash, confusion, sleepiness and discomfort while looking into bright light.
"At this early stage, it does look as though we need to look at folks who attended a specific rally in South Florida last week," said Rob Hayes, spokesman for the Florida Department of Health.
The Independent Media Center also posted a message on its Web site Wednesday urging those who were treated by the victim in Miami to seek medical attention if they exhibited any meningitis symptoms.
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