The Meningococcal Vaccine: Updates and New Information
Meningococcal disease is a severe bacterial infection of the bloodstream or the meninges — the thin lining covering the brain and spinal cord. Meningococcal bacteria can infect the brain, causing meningitis, or the bloodstream, causing meningococcemia.
Every year in the United States about 2,800 people are infected with meningococcus and about 300 die. About 400 people who survive have permanent disabilities, such as seizures, loss of limbs, kidney disease, deafness and mental retardation. While the disease has no prejudices and can strike anyone, children less than 1 year old and adolescents are at the greatest risk.
Since meningococcal disease is spread through saliva or prolonged, close contact with an infected person, first-year college students living in dormitories are at an increased risk, when compared with people of the same age not living in dorms.
Protect your child against meningococcal infection
The most important thing you can do to prevent your child from developing meningococcal disease is to vaccinate. Safe and effective vaccinations that contain four of the five most common types of meningococcal bacteria are available. The American Academy of Pediatrics (AAP) recommends that adolescents be immunized for meningococcal disease at age 11 or 12. The AAP recently updated their recommendations to include a booster for 16- to 18-year-olds who got the vaccine between 11 and 15 years of age. Adolescents who received their first dose of the meningococcal vaccine at or after the age of 16 do not need a booster.
If your child is 16 and has not received either the meningococcal vaccine or the booster, please make an appointment with your pediatrician and make sure to have your child vaccinated.
Symptoms of meningococcal disease
Meningococcal disease can be devastating, killing a previously healthy child in hours. The symptoms of meningococcal disease can include:
- Fever
- Chills
- Rash
- A flat, pink to red to purple spots mainly on the lower arms and legs, including the hands and feet. Small bruises or bleeding under the skin may also be visible.
- Nausea
- Vomiting
- Muscle aches
- Sudden, severe headache
- Confusion
- Sensitivity to light
- Stiff neck along with headache and sensitivity to light
Visit the Vaccine Education Center for more information about meningitis and the meningococcal vaccine.
Reviewed by: Patrick S. Pasquariello Jr., MD
Date: January 2012
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