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A pain in the joints. Arthralgia is a rare but recognised complication of meningococcal septicaemia. We report a case of a 29-year-old man presenting with a 24 h history of fever, joint swelling and subsequent development of a non-blanching, petechial rash. He was treated for probable meningococcal septicaemia and the causative pathogen was later identified as Neisseria meningitidis. He was treated with ceftriaxone and after 10 days the pain and swelling in his joints improved.