An 11-year-old boy from Antipolo City died from meningococcemia in Amang Rodriguez Medical Center, hospital officials said.

The emergency room of the hospital was opened and now back in operation after a thorough disinfection, the hospital said.

Dr. Ricardo Ilustre, director of the Amang Rodriguez Medical Center, confirmed reports that a boy, a resident of San Roque in Antipolo City, died in the hospital Thursday afternoon.

Ilustre said the hospital has informed proper authorities in Antipolo about the boy’s death.

The patient was confined at the Amang last August 25 after the boy reportedly complained of abdominal pain, fever and sore throat.

A diagnotic test showed the boy had meningococcemia.

Ilustre said this is the third case of meningoccocemia at the hospital this year, although all were not residents of Marikina.

"This is also the first time we have fatality reported but all who were treated here of this kind of illness are not from Marikina," he said.

He said meningococcal disease is not as contagious as the common cold and can be transmitted through saliva and occasionally through close, prolonged general contact with an infected person.

Meningococcemia is caused by the bacteria called Neisseria meningitidis.

The bacteria frequently live in a person's upper respiratory tract without causing visible signs of illness.

The bacteria can be spread from person to person through respiratory droplets – for example, you may become infected if you are around someone with the condition when they sneeze or cough.

The symptoms of meningococcemia include anxiety, fever, irritability, spotty red or purple rash.

Additional symptoms may include headache, muscle and joint pain, nausea, vomiting.

Later symptoms may include changing level of consciousness, ill appearance, large areas of bleeding under the skin (purpura), shock.

Blood tests will be done to rule out other infections and help confirm meningococcemia.

Such tests may include blood culture, complete blood count, clotting studies, lumbar puncture to obtain spinal fluid sample, skin biopsy.