Who is most at risk from pneumococcal meningitis?
Those at highest risk of contracting pneumococcal meningitis include people who have: • No spleen or a non-functioning spleen, owing to accident or disease; • Sickle-cell disease; • Coeliac syndrome; • A deficient immune system, owing to disease, or treatment for cancer, organ transplantation or HIV etc; • Chronic heart, lung or kidney disease (including nephrotic syndrome); • Diabetes; • Chronic liver disease including cirrhosis. Where possible, the pneumococcal meningitis vaccine should be given four to six weeks (but at least two weeks) before either chemotherapy for cancer treatment, or elective removal of the spleen (for medical reasons). The level of protection this vaccine provides against pneumococcal meningitis is not known, but it is important for people who are most susceptible to the infection to reduce their risk by getting vaccinated. This information has been modified from information on the Meningitis Trust website, the Meningitis Research Foundation, and the ‘Meningiti
