Is bacterial meningitis an emerging infectious disease?
With the decline in Hib disease, cases of bacterial meningitis have decreased since 1986. Meningococcal meningitis is a continuing threat in day-care centers and schools. Healthy children and young adults are susceptible, and death can occur within a few hours of onset. How can bacterial meningitis be prevented? • Vaccines — There are vaccines against Hib, some strains of Neisseria meningitidis, and many types of Streptococcus pneumoniae. The vaccines against Hib are very safe and highly effective. By age 6 months of age, every infant should receive at least three doses of an Hib vaccine. A fourth dose (booster) should be given to children between 12 and 18 months of age. The vaccine against Neisseria meningitidis (meningococcal vaccine) is not routinely used in civilians in the United States and is relatively ineffective in children under age 2 years. The vaccine is sometimes used to control outbreaks of some types of meningococcal meningitis in the United States. New meningococcal v
