Vaccine Information
Meningitis and septicaemia can KILL in under 4 hours. The bacteria which cause these diseases multiply in the body with alarming speed, overwhelming a person's immune system. This is why finding a vaccine to protect against these diseases is vital to give the body a head start and enable it to fight off the infection before it becomes life threatening.
How do vaccines work?
Pathogens are microbes such as viruses or bacteria that cause disease. Vaccines include a small amount of weakened or harmless microbes, which when introduced into the body stimulate the immune system to produce antibodies.
The immune system is then able to remember the microbe so if the body is invaded by the real bacteria, it is able to fight them instantly and stop the disease developing.
With some vaccinations, the immune memory can reduce over several years, which is why booster vaccinations are needed.
Do vaccines to protect against meningitis already exist?
Yes. The good news is vaccines exist to protect against some forms of meningitis such as Meningitis C and pneumoccoccal meningitis. Sadly though, there is still no vaccine to protect against the most common form of bacterial meningitis in the UK - Meningitis B.
Meningitis C
A vaccine to protect against Meningitis C has been available in the UK since 1999. Before the introduction of this vaccine, Meningitis C was the second most common cause of meningococcal meningitis in the UK.
Following its introduction, an extensive immunisation programme was carried out to offer the vaccine to all children up to the age of 18.
Babies are also given the vaccine, the schedule for which has recently been changed (from September 2006). Previously, babies received three doses of the vaccine aged two, three and four months. These doses have now been respaced so babies receive the vaccine at three, four and 12 months to make the protection more effective.
Anyone under the age of 25 who missed out on the Meningitis C vaccine is eligible to get the vaccine from their GP.
The incidence of Meningitis C across all age groups has dropped by 90 per cent since the vaccine was introduced.
Haemophilus influenzae (Hib)
Hib meningitis is caused by Haemophilus influenzae type b bacteria and was a major cause of meningitis and septicaemia in children in the UK prior to the introduction of the Hib vaccine in 1992.
This vaccine is given as part of the Childhood Immunisation Programme to babies aged two, three and four months and recently a new booster dose has been introduced (from September 2006) for babies aged 12 months.
Pneumococcal meningitis
Pneumococcal meningitis is one of the most deadly types of the disease. There are over 90 different strains of pneumococcal bacteria but most of the disease is caused by only seven types, which cause about 66 per cent of all cases of pneumococcal disease and 82 percent of those in children under the age of five.
In February 2006, the Department of Health announced changes to the Childhood Immunisation Programme, including the introduction of a routine 7-type pneumococcal conjugate vaccine for all under-twos in the UK.
Three doses will be given to babies at two, four and thirteen months.
In the US, where the vaccine has been available as part of the routine immunisation schedule since 2000, it has reduced cases of pneumococcal meningitis and septicaemia by 75%.
In addition to the routine vaccine, a 23-type polysaccharide pneumococcal vaccine is also recommended for children between the ages of 2 months and 5 years who are at an increased risk of getting the disease due to certain conditions. It is also offered routinely to people aged 65 and over.
For more information about the Childhood Immunisation Programme visit: http://www.immunisation.nhs.uk/
Travel advice for pilgrims to Hajj or Umrah
Strains of meningitis differ globally, with different countries being troubled by different types of the disease. It is important for travellers to be aware of this in case they need to be vaccinated against certain strains before they travel.
All pilgrims going to Hajj or Umrah are now required by the Government of Saudi Arabia to have a valid certificate of vaccination against four different strains of meningitis A, C, W and Y strains before they are issued with a visa. Anyone who has not received the ‘quadrivalent' meningococcal vaccine (ACWY Vac) may be refused entry into the country.
The Department of Health has further advice on meningitis for travellers to Hajj and Umrah.
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