Meningococcal disease, the main cause of meningitis has long been a major risk for infants. However, a new experimental vaccine may soon be available that will guard against this terrible disease. The current vaccine that is widely used is only meant for children over the age of two, leaving infants particularly vulnerable.
The mortality rates for Meningococcal disease are quite high. Up to 14% of those who do contract it will die, while 20% will suffer continuing effects of the disease. These effects can include major brain damage or even hearing loss. One of the scariest parts of the disease is that an infant can go from being healthy and be dead within a few hours. It remains one of the worst killers of infants, compared to other diseases.
Symptoms of the disease include high fever, a stiff neck and a severe headache. In some infants, these symptoms may appear in as little as a few hours, while other children may see them progress over a period of one to two days. Infants may appear to be moving slower and may seem irritable. In some cases, it can be very difficult for parents to realize that their child has meningococcal disease, since the symptoms are similar to other less fatal diseases.
The new experimental vaccine is called Menveo and it is being manufactured by Novartis, a British company. It has already been used with success on over 400 infants and will protect against four of the five most popular strains of the disease. Novartis funded a study for these infants, finding that the vaccine was very effective.
In order to get full immunity, babies will need to have several doses of the vaccine. It is recommended that the first dose be given when the infant is two months old. Boosters are then necessary at four and twelve months. When given in this manner, the study found that it was 86 to 100% effective in protecting infants from meningitis.
The vaccine will still need to go through the approval process in the United States. If it is approved, it has the potential to cut the mortality rate from infant meningitis by half. The last time a vaccine for meningitis was approved for children as young as the age of two, there was a dramatic decline in the amount of reported cases. They fell abruptly from 20,000 per year to just over 1,500.
However, these vaccines did not specifically focus on meningococcal disease. They are meant to protect against different strains, namely pneumococcus bacteria and Haemophilus influenzae type b. By adding protection against meningococcal disease, children will be much less likely to develop this deadly and terrifying disease.
Experts believe that if this new experimental vaccine is approved, we will be that much closer to completely eradicating meningitis in children.
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