This form of bacterial meningitis is fatal in 10 percent of cases, with another 10 percent chance of brain damage, according to the Mayo Clinic website. Although only around 100 college students contract meningitis each year, each case has the potential to become a campus-wide epidemic, according to the website.

According to Christopher Coley, chief of medicine for UHS, about three to five out of 10,000,000 college students have contract meningococcal meningitis from somebody else.

“I think the average student in a dorm setting or dining hall, with no sharing of water glasses, is not at any enhanced risk,” Coley said.

Coley said that unlike Lyons’ form of bacterial meningitis, viral meningitis is far more common and often goes undetected.

Coley said that since the CDC has recommended vaccinations for all incoming first-years for the past three years, approximately 70 percent of the last three incoming classes at Harvard have been immunized.

But members of the current senior class, Coley said, were already in college when the initial recommendation was released.

The vaccination for this strain of bacterial meningitis is approximately 75 percent effective and lasts for three to five years, Coley said.

Most recent occurrences of meningitis, including the six people diagnosed within days of each other in New Hampshire in December, have been isolated occurrences, and have not led to outbreaks.

Coley said that secondary cases of meningitis are very rare, even though college students are at a slightly elevated risk because of the dorm setting and their age.

“We’re following CDC guidelines very carefully,” Coley said. “I think students should call, we will have hotlines and physicians on call.”

Early diagnosis and treatment are vital to stopping the progression of the disease, which can be extremely rapid and kill in less than 48 hours in some cases, according to the MDPH.

“For people who don’t seek attention and get very sick, the fatality rate is very high,” Rosenthal said. “This [case] was picked up and brought to the hospital early.”

Bacterial meningitis is extremely rare, affecting 40 people per year in Massachusetts, Rosenthal said. According to the American College Health Association, of the 100 or so college students who contract meningococcal meningitis, five to 15 deaths are reported annually.

According to the MDPH, Neisseria meningitidis, the bacteria that causes meningococcal meningitis, is spread through saliva during kissing, sharing of food, drinks or cigarettes, and sneezing or coughing.

According to the MDPH, five to 15 percent of people carry the bacteria that causes meningococcal meningitis in their noses and throats but do not become infected.