Doctors have urged parents to be aware of the symptoms of meningitis after five notifications of suspected meningococcal disease were notified since the beginning of the year.
There have been three cases, one confirmed and two suspected, in Dunmanway, Co Cork. There is one other confirmed case and one unconfirmed in the county.
Of the three cases in Dunmanway, one is a third-level student and the other two are teenagers who attend Maria Immaculata College, Dunmanway.
The Health Service Executive Southern Area said it all close contacts of the suspected cases have been offered antibiotics. All GPs in the area have also been notified and information has been distributed at the school.
Pupils in the same year as the two affected students are being offered antibiotics today.
Dr. Fiona Ryan, consultant in public health medicine, said: "Meningococcal disease tends to occur more often in the winter and spring months and we would urge people to be aware of the signs. The meningococcal C campaign has been a huge success and there has been a dramatic reduction in Group C disease. However, meningococcal B continues to occur and people need to be aware of this," she said.
A vaccine for the meningococcal C strain was introduced in October 2000 and has been very successful, no vaccine has yet been developed for meningococcal B which can be "just as serious" as the C strain and has very similar symptoms, Dr Ryan said.
Some 29 cases of meningococcal B were reported in Cork and Kerry last year.
Symptoms of meningitis can present can, in babies, include high temperature, fretfulness, difficulty in waking, a high-pitched moaning cry and a rash of red or purple spots or bruises which can occur anywhere on the body. Not all symptoms may be present in those with the illness.
The illness can develop very rapidly, sometimes within a matter of hours. It can be caused by a number of different organisms, some of which are bacteria and some of which are viruses.
The meningococcal organism is the commonest cause of bacterial meningitis in Ireland, the HSE said.