Currently, there are two outbreaks of serogroup B meningitits in
the United States; eight cases have been reported from Princeton
University and three from the University of California, Santa Barbara,
according to releases from each state’s public health department.
An eighth Princeton University student is
hospitalized and receiving treatment after she was diagnosed with
meningitis on Nov. 21, according to a statement from Princeton
University.
Health officials are conducting tests to determine whether this latest case is related to the seven cases of Neisseria meningitidis serogroup B meningitis cases associated with the university since March.
As of Nov. 14, there have been seven cases of confirmed invasive meningococcal disease among six students and one visitor to the campus, according to a Princeton University press release.
Six patients have recovered, and the most
recent patient remains hospitalized, according to a statement from the
New Jersey Department of Health.
Two of the three cases at the University of California, Santa Barbara have been confirmed as N. meningitidis serogroup B meningitis, according to a press release.
Laboratory testing is being performed on the third. The first two cases
are recovering, and the third is currently receiving medical care.
In response to the meningococcal serogroup B
outbreak that began at Princeton in March, university officials said
they expect to make the first of a serogroup B meningococcal two-dose
series vaccine (4CMenB; Bexsero, Novartis) currently approved for use
outside the United States available in early December. The second dose
should be available in February, according to the statement.
“The CDC and FDA have determined that the
unique pattern of the disease in this Princeton outbreak — the high rate
of cases that have occurred and over the long period of time they have
occurred in — warrant expanding access to a group B vaccine for that
high-risk population,” Amanda Cohn, MD, a medical officer with
the CDC, said during a press briefing. “Each outbreak situation is
unique and requires rigorous assessment before use of this vaccine can
be considered. With that said, we’re open to recommending this vaccine
during other outbreaks of serogroup B meningococcal disease, and we’ll
follow each outbreak very closely and make decisions about requesting
use of vaccines for additional outbreaks when needed.”
The university said it will cover the cost of
the vaccine for all students who receive it. Students younger than 18
years will need a signed consent form from their parent or guardian
before receiving the vaccine.
The CDC is expected to recommend that all
Princeton University undergraduate students receive the vaccine. This
includes students who live in dormitories and off campus, and graduate
students who live in dormitories, as well as members of the university
community who have functional and anatomic asplenia (including sickle
cell disease) and late complement component deficiencies.
The vaccine would be made available only to these groups, and it would not be administered anywhere else.
Meningococcal
vaccines licensed in the United States include four of the five most
common serogroups: A, C, Y and W-135. However, there is currently no
vaccine licensed in the United States that protects against serogroup B.
-Updated Nov. 26
http://www.healio.com/
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