1. What is meningococcal disease?
Meningococcal disease is a serious bacterial
illness. It is a leading cause of bacterial meningitis
in children 2 through 18 years old in the United
States.
Meningitis is an infection of fluid surrounding
the brain and the spinal cord. Meningococcal disease
also causes blood infections.
About 1,000 - 2,600 people get meningococcal
disease each year in the U.S. Even when they are
treated with antibiotics, 10-15% of these people
die. Of those who live, another 11-19% lose their
arms or legs, become deaf, have problems with
their nervous systems, become mentally retarded,
or suffer seizures or strokes.
Anyone can get meningococcal disease. But it
is most common in infants less than one year of
age and people with certain medical conditions,
such as lack of a spleen. College freshmen who
live in dormitories, and teenagers 15-19 have
an increased risk of getting meningococcal disease.
Meningococcal infections can be treated with
drugs such as penicillin. Still, about 1 out of
every ten people who get the disease dies from
it, and many others are affected for life. This
is why preventing the disease through use of meningococcal
vaccine is important for people at highest risk.
2. Meningococcal vaccine
There are two kinds of meningococcal vaccine
in the U.S.:
- Meningococcal conjugate vaccine (MCV4) was
licensed in 2005. It is the preferred vaccine
for people 2 through 55 years of age.
- Meningococcal polysaccharide vaccine (MPSV4)
has been available since the 1970s. It may be
used if MCV4 is not available, and is the only
meningococcal vaccine licensed for people older
than 55.
Both vaccines can prevent 4 types of meningococcal
disease, including 2 of the 3 types most common
in the United States and a type that causes epidemics
in Africa. Meningococcal vaccines cannot prevent
all types of the disease. But they do protect
many people who might become sick if they didn’t
get the vaccine.
Both vaccines work well, and protect about 90%
of people who get them. MCV4 is expected to give
better, longer-lasting protection.
MCV4 should also be better at preventing the
disease from spreading from person to person.
3. Who should get meningococcal vaccine and
when?
A dose of MCV4 is recommended for children and
adolescents 11 through 18 years of age.
This dose is normally given during the routine
preadolescent immunization visit (at 11 to 12
years of age). But those who did not get the vaccine
during this visit should get it at the earliest
opportunity.
Meningococcal vaccine is also recommended for
other people at increased risk for meningococcal
disease:
• College freshmen living in dormitories.
• Microbiologists who are routinely exposed
to meningococcal bacteria.
• U.S. military recruits.
• Anyone traveling to, or living in, a part
of the world where meningococcal disease is
common, such as parts of Africa.
• Anyone who has a damaged spleen, or whose
spleen has been removed.
• Anyone who has terminal complement component
deficiency (an immune system disorder).
• People who might have been exposed to meningitis
during an outbreak.
MCV4 is the preferred vaccine for people 2 through
55 years of age in these risk groups.
MPSV4 can be used if MCV4 is not available and
for adults over 55.
How Many Doses?
People 2 years of age and older should get 1
dose. Sometimes an additional dose is recommended
for people who remain at high risk. Ask your provider.
MPSV4 may be recommended for children 3 months
to 2 years of age under special circumstances.
These children should get 2 doses, 3 months apart.
4. Some people should not get meningococcal
vaccine or should wait.
Anyone who has ever had a severe (life-threatening)
allergic reaction to a previous dose of either
meningococcal vaccine should not get another dose.
Anyone who has a severe (life threatening) allergy
to any vaccine component should not get the vaccine.
Tell your doctor if you have any severe allergies.
Anyone who is moderately or severely ill at the
time the shot is scheduled should probably wait
until they recover. Ask your provider. People
with a mild illness can usually get the vaccine.
Anyone who has ever had Guillain-Barré
Syndrome should talk with their provider before
getting MCV4.
Meningococcal vaccines may be given to pregnant
women. However, MCV4 is a new vaccine and has
not been studied in pregnant women as much as
MPSV4 has. It should be used only if clearly needed.
Meningococcal vaccines may be given at the same
time as other vaccines.
5. What are the risks from meningococcal vaccine?
A vaccine, like any medicine, could possibly
cause serious problems, such as severe allergic
reactions. The risk of meningococcal vaccine causing
serious harm, or death, is extremely small.
Mild problems as listed below
• As many as half the people who get meningococcal
vaccines have mild side effects, such as redness
or pain where the shot was given.
• If these problems occur, they usually last
for 1 or 2 days. They are more common after
MCV4 than after MPSV4.
• A small percentage of people who receive
the vaccine develop a fever.
• Severe problems
• Serious allergic reactions, within a few
minutes to a few hours of the shot, are very
rare.
A serious nervous system disorder called Guillain-Barré
Syndrome (or GBS) has been reported among some
people who received MCV4. This happens so rarely
that it is currently not possible to tell if the
vaccine might be a factor. Even if it is, the
risk is very small.
6. What if there is a moderate or severe reaction?
What should I look for?
Any unusual conditions, such as a serious allergic
reaction, high fever or unusual behavior. Serious
allergic reactions are extremely rare with any
vaccine. If one were to occur, it would most likely
be within a few minutes to a few hours after the
shot. Signs can include difficulty breathing,
hoarseness or wheezing, hives, paleness, weakness,
a fast heart beat or dizziness. If a high fever
or seizure were to occur, it would usually be
within a week after the shot.
What should I do?
- Call a doctor or get the person to a doctor
right away.
- Tell your doctor what happened, the date and
time it happened, and when the vaccination was
given.
- Ask your doctor, nurse, or health department
to file a Vaccine Adverse Event Reporting System
(VAERS) form. Or you can file this report through
the VAERS web site at www.vaers.hhs.gov, or
by calling 1-800-822-7967.
- VAERS does not provide medical advice.
7. The National Vaccine Injury Compensation
Program
In the rare event that you or your child has
a serious reaction to a vaccine, a federal program
has been created to help you pay for the care
of those who have been harmed.
For details about the National Vaccine Injury
Compensation Program, call 1-800-338-2382 or visit
the program's website at www.hrsa.gov/vaccinecompensation.
8. How can I learn more?
Ask your health care provider. They can give
you the vaccine package insert or suggest other
sources of information.
Call your local or state health department's
immunization program.
Contact the Centers for Disease Control and Prevention
(CDC):
- Call 1-800-232-4636 (1-800-CDC-INFO)
- Visit the CDC’s website at www.cdc.gov/vaccines
- Visit CDC’s meningococcal disease website
at www.cdc.gov/ncidod/dbmd/diseseinfo/meningococcal_g.htm
- Visit CDC’s Travelers’ Health
website at wwwn.cdc.gov/travel
U.S. Department of Health & Human Services
Centers for Disease Control and Prevention
Vaccine Information Statement (Interim)
Meningococcal
1/28/08
42 U.S.C. Section 300aa-26 |
