Although meningococcal meningitis affects only about 2,500 people in the U.S. each year, it has devastating consequences and can only be prevented by vaccination.
Several times every year we see newspaper reports of a previously healthy college freshman who develops a fever and dies of meningitis 24 hours later, despite rapid hospitalization and proper treatment.
Even with aggressive antibiotic treatment, between 10 percent and 15 percent of people with meningococcal meningitis die, and the outcome is even worse in young adults. Further, survivors may be left with nervous system complications such as deafness or seizures.
Most cases occur in healthy children and young adults who contract the bacteria from other people's coughing, sneezing, or kissing. The bacteria spread easily in college dorms and among new military recruits. The infection can involve the bloodstream as well as the membranes covering the brain and spinal cord (meninges).
The Food and Drug Administration approved a new vaccine, Menactra, in 2005, but it had been in such short supply that priority was given to college freshmen and teenagers about to enter high school.
Now that the vaccine is more plentiful, the Advisory Committee on Immunization Practices (ACIP) recommended in June that all children between the ages of 11 and 18 receive the vaccine at their next visit to their doctor.
The recommendation of the ACIP means that insurance companies will likely cover the $89 cost of the vaccine. If your insurance does not cover this expense, you need to think twice before denying your children protection against this uncommon but terrible disease.
As Menactra joins the list of vaccines added recently to federal recommendations, the cost of vaccinations for each child has risen from $155 in 1995 to $900 for boys and to $1,200 for girls.
