A THREE-year-old Bolton girl has died after contracting the meningitis virus.

The youngster, from Kearsley, died yesterday morning at Royal Bolton Hospital.

Her body was due to be examined by a doctor today, but all the early indications show she was suffering from meningitis - probably the meningicoccal strain.

The girl was rushed into the Royal Bolton Hospital but died hours later. A police spokesman confirmed they were not treating the death as suspicious.

The illness can develop quickly and can kill within hours.

This is the ninth case of the illness to be highlighted by the BEN this year. Back in May, Bolton bakery worker, Mark Salt, 29, died. Just two days earlier Mark was admitted to the Royal Bolton Hospital before being allowed home after being told he had flu. But his symptoms developed at a frightening pace and he died in hospital just hours after his fiancee, Carole Hughes had telephoned for an ambulance.

Meningitis is notoriously difficult to spot at first because the symptoms can be similar to those of flu.

And today, Dr Robert Aston, consultant in communicable disease control with the Wigan and Bolton Health Authority, urged parents to trust their "maternal or paternal instinct" in the hope of getting the illness diagnosed at its earliest possible stage. He said: "The only way to deal with meningicoccal disease is to catch it as early as possible. But the problem is, its early symptoms are very like any other form of infection.

"Go with that gut feeling mothers and fathers get when they know something is wrong. Get medical help and insist on medical help."

However, he added that on a first visit, doctors themselves find the illness almost impossible to diagnose.

But, he said, parents should continue observing their child and not be worried about calling for medical help again.

Symptoms of the illness within babies and young children include a fever, possibly with hands and feet feeling cold, refusing feeds or vomiting, high pitched moaning cry or whimpering, dislike of being handled and fretful, neck retraction with arching of the back, blank and staring expression, difficult to wake and lethargic, pale and blotchy complexion. Adults suffer vomiting, fever, headaches, stiff neck, light aversion, drowsiness, and joint pain.

This is the time of year in which most cases occur.

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