Pneumococcal conjunctivitis at an elementary school–Maine, September 20-December 6, 2002

On October 18, 2002, the nurse at an elementary school in Westbrook, Maine, notified the Maine Bureau of Health (MBOH) of an increase in the number of students with conjunctivitis. During September 23-October 18, a total of 31 students in kindergarten and in first and second grades either were reported by parents to the nurse as having conjunctivitis or had conjunctivitis diagnosed by the nurse at school. Conjunctival swab cultures from five (38%) of the 13 students who were tested initially grew Streptococcus pneumoniae. This report documents additional cases in the community and summarizes preliminary results of the investigation of this outbreak, which indicated that the outbreak was caused by the same nontypeable strain of pneumococcus that caused an outbreak of conjunctivitis among college students in New Hampshire during January-March 2002. This is the first time that this strain has been reported as the cause of a conjunctivitis outbreak among schoolchildren. Health-care providers and public health officials should be aware that nontypeable S. pneumoniae can cause outbreaks of conjunctivitis in school-age children and college students; outbreaks should be reported to state health departments and CDC.