Doctors have urged parents in Northern Ireland to be vigilant, but not to panic, after a 17-month-old girl died from meningitis in the Royal Belfast Hospital for Sick Children.
Five other children under three were being treated in the hospital for the disease last night.
Orla Scullion, from Brownlow Terrace, Lurgan, Co Armagh, died on Saturday from meningococcal septicaemia, the most serious strain of the illness.
She was admitted to Craigavon Area Hospital on Friday but was released when no sign of the disease was detected. However, she was readmitted and later transferred to the children's hospital where she died on Saturday.
A spokesman for the Craigavon hospital said the child was thoroughly examined when first admitted and showed no signs of the disease.
Four children from different parts of Northern Ireland were last night in a critical condition. A fifth was stable.
A spokeswoman for the Royal hospital said there were no family links between the children.
Dr Bob Taylor, head of the intensive care unit at the children's hospital, said parents should be vigilant and look out for symptoms of meningitis in their children.
Typical symptoms of meningococcal septicaemia are fast breathing, cold hands and feet and a rash.
He said parents should apply common sense and not panic.
The hospital said there did not appear to be any connection between the cases, but Dr Taylor said there had been more cases than normal this winter.
"There does seem to be an association between flu in the general public and outbreaks of this disease," he said.
He warned parents it was easy to confuse signs of meningitis with general childhood illness, such as children being off their food or suffering from a high temperature.
"However, when the child gets a rash - particularly one which doesn't disappear when you press a glass tumbler on top of it - then that is the time for urgent medical attention."
