SHANGHAI, Feb. 4(Xinhuanet)-- No group C meningitis patients have been found in Shanghai, and the number of other types of meningitis patients in the city is smaller than last year, according to Shanghai health authorities.

"Shanghai has made full preparations for any possible outbreak of the disease, including distribution of vaccines, training of medical workers and publicity o f prevention information," said local health bureau official Wang Panshi.

The Ministry of Health records show 258 meningitis cases reported in China in January, with 16 reported deaths. East China's Anhui and Jiangsu provinces reported 61 and 15 cases respectively.

To prevent an outbreak of meningitis, the Shanghai public health center has made an emergency scheme for meningitis prevention in case the disease strikes, said Lu Hongzhou, deputy director of the center.

Lu said 99 percent of the children in Shanghai have been vaccinated against meningitis."The disease is curable, and there is little possibility of meningitis outbreak in the country," he said.

Meningitis is an acute infectious disease most often caused by a bacterial or viral infection of the membranes around the brain and spinal cord. It is marked by fever, vomiting and intense headache.