We couldn't believe mum would die of meningitis

Devastated family want everyone to realise killer disease can affect anyone, not just young people.

HYACINTH Brown's family always believed she would be the last person to fall ill. The 54-year-old mother-of-two did not smoke or drink – and even took hygiene seriously enough to wash her hands after going for a ride on the bus.

So when she complained of feeling off colour, her worried children called their father, who finished his taxi driving shift and came home early.

Even then, as Hyacinth shivered on the couch in her Broomhouse home, her family believed she had nothing more serious than a bout of flu and would recover in a couple of days.

They never suspected she could have contracted meningococcal meningitis – a condition widely mistaken as only affecting young children and students.

Tragically Hyacinth's health deteriorated and she was rushed to hospital where, despite a brave fight which stunned doctors, she succumbed to the illness.

Husband Alex, 66, said: "We had both gone off to work that day. She was just her usual self that morning. My daughter went to pick her up after work and on the way home she said she was not feeling right.

"At about 5pm my daughter phoned me and I came home right away. When I got back she was sleeping. She said she was a bit cold so I just wrapped her up and let her sleep.

"She must have come to bed because when I got up to go to the toilet she was sleeping beside me. When I came back I didn't want to disturb her so I went to sleep on the couch.

"I woke up when I heard a bang. I remember thinking that's it was an odd thing to hear. I got up but she was not in the toilet. I went into the kitchen and she was slumped over.

"She didn't know who I was or anything. I phoned an ambulance and they were here in ten minutes. She was in a different world altogether, it was terrifying.

"They tried to speak to her and then said they had to take her in straight away.

"They took her to the Edinburgh Royal Infirmary. I phoned my son and daughter and we went after her ten minutes later.

"When we arrived they told us to go into this room. We knew then there was something wrong – it was not just a waiting room.

"After about five minutes they came in and told us that she was bad and they would be in touch. After another five minutes they came back.

"They said that she had a chest infection and had burst out in a rash. They reckoned it was meningitis and they didn't expect her to last the night."

Hyacinth's daughter Petal, 19, said: "We asked what her chances were of pulling through. They always said she was in a bad state, but stable.

"Personally, for me, I always thought she would pull through, because that's my mum, and she's a fighter.

"But her blood pressure was so low. She had kidney problems, she was on an oxygen machine – practically all her organs were down.

"The way they explained it, if it was just her kidneys that had gone they could have done something, but it was everything, and it all happened so quickly.

"There were 18 patients in that ward and all those doctors and not one person thought she would last through the night. They said it was the worst case of meningitis they had ever seen in the hospital, but she still fought it all the way."

Hyacinth's death earlier this year was a devastating blow to her family. Like many people, they believed meningitis only affected young people.

However, although more than half of cases involve children aged five or under, the next two most vulnerable groups are students, and adults around the age of 55 and over.

By speaking about the tragedy, the family want to make sure that others do not miss the tell-tale signs of the infection.

Petal, a dance student at Telford College, said: "I remember her saying to me, 'Pet, do you ever get the feeling you need the toilet but can't go.'

"I know now that's one of the effects – not being able to pass urine. The rash is the last thing to come with meningococcal meningitis. By that time her blood had been poisoned by septicaemia.

"If I could say anything it would be that if you're not feeling well, get checked out. If this could happen to my mum it could happen to anyone.

"She was one of the healthiest women around. She didn't drink or smoke, always took her vitamins, and when she came off the bus she would wash her hands.

"Someone could have sneezed on her or coughed on her, and that was it. The symptoms are vomiting, tiredness, aching pains. If there's anything wrong with you, definitely get checked out, it could save your life. You read stories about meningitis and people pulling through, but if gets to that stage where you have the rash it is really difficult."

Hyacinth, who is said to have had a great working relationship with Edinburgh Leisure boss Keith Jackson, where she worked as secretary for 20 years , died in February.

Her death has devastated a close-knit family and ended a romance that started in the sun-drenched West Indian island of Trinidad a quarter of a century ago.

Alex said: "I worked as a roofer out there. Hyacinth and I pretty much hit it off straight away.

"We married out there and came back to Edinburgh once our son Ty, now 23, came along. Hyacinth loved Edinburgh, although she found it a bit on the chilly side coming from a climate where it was very hot, but she adapted well. She had a great sense of humour and lived for her family.

"She would do anything for anyone and never had a bad word to say about anyone."

Symptoms can be deadly and mistaken for flu
PEOPLE need to be vigilant against the potentially deadly effects of meningitis whatever age they are.

The symptoms can easily be mistaken for flu but must be treated before it is too late.

Bridie Taylor, services and education director at the Meningitis Trust, said: "Meningitis can affect anyone of any age, at any time. However, those aged over 55 are deemed to be an at-risk group. This may be due to a weaker immune system and difficulty when fighting common infections like colds and flu.

"The early symptoms of meningitis and meningococcal septicaemia are similar to those of flu and can include headache, fever, vomiting, diarrhoea and general tiredness.

"The more specific signs and symptoms include a stiff neck, dislike of bright lights, confusion, joint and muscle pain, fever with cold hands and feet and, in some cases, a rash that does not fade under pressure.

"Symptoms can appear in any order and some may not appear at all. Meningitis and associated septicaemia (blood poisoning) can kill within hours. Anyone who develops these symptoms should seek medical help urgently.

"As many as 500,000 people living in the UK have had either viral or bacterial meningitis.

"Around 3000 cases of bacterial meningitis occur every year in the UK and there are probably more than double that number of cases of viral meningitis.

"Children under the age of five, teenagers and young adults are also at risk groups."