Get Your Child Vaccinated Against Bacterial Meningitis BEFORE School Starts, Say Experts

February 23, 2007-A panel of experts from the National Foundation for Infectious Diseases (NFID), the U.S. Centers for Disease Control and Prevention (CDC), and the National Meningitis Association (NMA) held a teleconference today, urging parents to have their children vaccinated against bacterial meningitis well before the start of the school year.

Experts are hoping to avoid a repeat of the vaccine shortage which occurred near the beginning of the 2006/07 school year. They want parents to know that the vaccine for bacterial meningitis is available year-round.

"Demand is high and concentrated around school time, and there was a supply reduction," said Dr. Tom Clark, a medical epidemiologist from the CDC's National Center for Immunization and Respiratory Diseases. "Now the supply is recovered, and people should be vaccinated. The vaccine can be given at any time of year."

Meningitis is an infection of spinal cord fluid and the fluid surrounding the brain. The majority of meningitis cases are caused by viruses, but approximately 1 in 25 are caused by bacterial or fungal infections. Bacterial meningitis is far more serious than viral meningitis.

According to the Centers for Disease Control and Prevention, bacterial meningitis can cause brain damage, hearing loss, or learning disabilities - and it can be deadly. The disease can be treated, but it needs to be detected early on. Antibiotics may lower the risk of death to below 15 percent. Of course, no parent would want to play a numbers game with their child's life at stake, so it's crucial that parents stay informed about the prevention of the disease.

Preteens, teens, and young adults are most at risk for contracting bacterial meningitis. The symptoms of the disease, which include a sudden high fever, headache, stiff neck, nausea, vomiting, confusion, and sleepiness, may be mistaken for flu symptoms.