Researchers to test vaccine for meningitis on campus
■ Radiant Research says it is
looking especially for students
in residence halls to participate
By Kara Cogswell
Oregon Daily Emerald
A new vaccine for meningitis be
ing tested in Eugene this week
could protect against the disease
longer than the existing vaccine, ac
cording to the doctor leading the
study.
Dr. Donald England, the medical
director of Radiant Research in Eu
gene, said researchers are looking
for 100 people to participate in tests
this week. If those spots are filled,
Radiant Research may conduct a
second round of tests with another
100 people, he said.
In particular, researchers are in
terested in finding students who
live in residence halls to take part
in the study, he said. According to
another study published in the
American Medical Journal in Au
gust, college students who live in
residence halls are at a greater risk
of contracting the disease.
“We’re hoping to get a big
turnout from the University, be
cause that’s the group with the
biggest problem — and where we
could do the most good,’’ he said.
Meningitis, an infection of the
fluid surrounding the brain and
spinal cord, can take bacterial and
viral forms. Meningococcal disease,
a bacterial infection spread through
close oral contact such as kissing,
sneezing or sharing utensils, often
leads to meningitis.
Jill Dieringer, a freshman at the
University, died of meningococcal
disease in February. After her
death, hundreds'of students went
to the University Health Center to
get the meningitis vaccine.
This fall, students received a fact
sheet on the disease and the vac
cine when they moved in to the res
idence halls, University Housing
Director Michael Eyster said.
Eyster said he worked with Uni
versity Health Center Director Dr.
Gerald Fleischli to put together the
information for housing residents
to let students know a vaccine was
available.
They did not go as far as recom
mending that students get the vac
cine, because it does not protect
against all strains of meningitis,
and it is difficult to assess risk fac
tors for the disease, he said.
According to the American Col
lege Health Association, students
who smoke or frequent bars regular
ly may be at a higher risk for con
tracting meningococcal disease.
England said smoking may increase
the risk for contracting meningitis
because it weakens people’s natural
defenses against infections that
spread through the respiratory tract.
The smoke in many bars puts non
smokers at risk as well, he said.
About half the participants in the
study will receive the new vaccine.
The rest will be given the existing
vaccine, he said.
Both vaccines, which are made
by the national drug company Ad
ventis Pasture, protect against 4 out
of 5 existing strains of meningitis,
which account for about two-thirds
of meningitis cases, he said.
The new vaccine is expected to
remain effective longer than the ex
isting vaccine, which only lasts a
few years, he said.
There is no cost for the vaccine
for participants in the study, he
said. At the health center, the vac
cine costs $66.
Researchers will draw blood
from participants during the initial
visit when they get the vaccine, and
at a follow-up visit a month later to
compare the effects of the vaccines,
he said. Participants will be paid
$25 for each visit.
Radiant Research, a national
corporation with headquarters in
Meningococcal
disease facts:
* The disease strikes about 3,000
Americans each year, and is
responsible for about 300 deaths
annually,
• An estimated 100 to 125 cases of
meningococcal disease occur on
college campuses annually, killing 5
to 15 students each year.
Kirkland, Wash., is conducting
the study at research sites across
the country, spokeswoman Beth
Katz said.
Those interested in participating
in the Eugene study can call Radi
ant Research at 434-1003.
Kara Cogswell is a student activities reporter
for the Oregon Daily Emerald. She can be
reached at karacogswell@dailyemerald.com.
McArthur Court: More than just a ‘tough’ basketball home court
■ McArthur Court has hosted
more than just sporting events
throughout its 75-year history
By Steven Neuman
for the Emerald
McArthur Court, also known as
Mac Court and “The Pit” to stu
dents, fans and players, is the Uni
versity’s ivy-coated home to men
and women's basketball, women's
volleyball and men’s wrestling. It is
also home to history and legends.
The arena is named for Clifton N.
(Pat) McArthur, the University's
first student body president and a
student athlete, according to the
University admissions office Web
site. Built with student funds in
1926, McArthur Court was first the
site of a game in 1927 when the Ore
gon Tall Firs, as the men’s basketball
team was then known, beat
Willamette University, 38-10. In
1939, the Tall Firs were the first
team to win the newly inaugurated
NCAA Championship.
Originally designed to hold 6,000
fans> McArthur Court has been pro
gressively expanded. It now seats
9,738 and is the oldest active basket
ball stadium in the country, accord
ing to the University admissions of
fice Website.
George Beres, the University’s
sports information director from
1976-82, recalled how the issue of
seating once caused some internal
controversy.
Part of Beres’ job was to report at
tendance at the basketball games to
the league. But a former basketball
coach liked to pad the numbers a lit
tle, Beres said.
“(He) always insisted that we put
down that the attendance at a sold-out
game was 10,000. It looked better for
him. It was only after (he) left for Penn
State was I approached by (current as
sociate athletic director) Herb Ya
manaka and told that the attendance
of a full game should be reported as
9,738. It was only then that I realized
we could not actually fit 10,000 peo
ple,” Beres said. Beres also remem
bered former men’s basketball coach
Dick Harter, who had an unusual de
fensive strategy called the “Kamikaze
Kids.” During games, the players
would go skidding around the floor
diving after the ball, Beres said.
On March 8,1970, the band
Chicago played at McArthur
Court, but according
to a March 10 Emerald
article, things went sour
when200people
attempted to make
the concert a free event,
and some individuals broke
windows and took doors
off their hinges.
Throughout its history, the court
has also been renovated several
times. In 1992, renovations added
new locker rooms, a team room and
coaches’ offices, and in 1993,
women's basketball volleyball and
softball received new quarters. Dur
ing the 1995-96 academic year, a
$400,000 renovation of the outer
concourse on the street level was
completed, and the academic area
for student athletes was completely
updated and redesigned.
In the summer of 1996, the court
received a new roof with a price tag
of $1.7 million, and in an attempt to
make the space more usable for oth
er events, new seating was put in
place in fall 1997 at the court level
and the first balcony.
The court has seen its share of non
sporting events. Sandy Walton, the
senior associate athletic director, who
came to the school in 1978, remem
bers Elvis Presley, Bob Hope, Johnny
Cash, Willie Nelson and The Judds—
with Garth Brooks as a warm-up
band—performing at Mac Court.
On March 8, 1970, the band
Chicago played at McArthur Court,
but according to a March 10 Emer
ald article, things went sour when
200 people attempted to make the
concert a free event, and some indi
viduals broke windows and took
doors off their hinges.
But despite the number of musical
events the court has hosted, Walton
said it’s not a great venue.
“The acoustics stink,” she said. “I
could imagine it would be terrible
to have to play music there, but it’s
fantastic for basketball.”
According to the Athletic Depart
ment, Mac Court is more than just a
building — it is one of the primary
attributes of Oregon’s basketball
program.
“It is just one of the most intimate
places to play ball, just because the
fans are so incredibly close to the
players,” Walton said.
In 1995, Sports Illustrated listed
Mac Court as one of the 12 toughest
places in the country to play college
basketball. ESPN.corn’s panel of
sports columnists rated it the worst
place in the Pacific-10 Conference for
a team to play an away game.
“The Ducks feast off noise from
three balconies that vibrate from the
deafening cheers of 10,000,” the
ESPN.com report said. “Students
sitting at courtside only add to the
roaring atmosphere.”
Steven Neuman is a freelance reporter
for the Oregon Daily Emerald.
National Collegiate Awareness Week
University of Oregon
October 21-27, 2001
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80% of UO students drink responsibly
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Sponsored by the UO Substance Abuse Prevention Team
Data available from the Office of Student Life
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