These are the warning signs of meningitis
bacterial meningitis is a rare disease, but, when it appears, it can be fatal or leave important sequelae. It is the first cause of death by infection in children and adolescents. The good news is that in Spain we have five vaccines the bacteria that most often cause meningitis: meningococcus C, meningococcus B , meningococcal ACWY, pneumococcus, and haemophilus influenzae type B (Hib) .
they are All funded by the national Health system, except that of the meningococcus B available at drugstores , and that is only supported in the Canary islands and Castile and León. The Advisory Committee on Vaccines of the Spanish Association of Pediatrics ( CAV-AEP) has asked for its inclusion in the calendar of state funded and recommends vaccination at 3, 5 and 12-15 months of life because, although it is rare, “is devastating, with a 10% case fatality, and 10-30% of sequelae such as deafness or amputation,” warns dr. Francisco Alvarez, coordinator of the CAV-AEP.
in Addition, Spain continues to be predominant meningococcus B, followed by the types W, y and C . The meningitis due to Hib has been “virtually eradicated” from our midst due to the universal vaccination of all children under 2 years initiated in the early 90s, ABC explained the doctor Valentí Pineda, president of the Catalan Society of Pediatrics.
With the routine immunization against pneumococcus during the first year of life has also decreased very important to meningitis from this cause. The meningococcus B, A, C, W And y have incident variables at the time . You can dominate for a few years a particular type and then change.
Thanks to the universal vaccination against the C since the year 2000, this type of meningitis has almost disappeared. “Currently the most frequent are the type B, W and y , these last two with a very substantial increase during the last five years,” cautions dr. Pineda.
Currently there is a vaccine that contains types A, C, W And y , will begin to manage in a systematic way and funded adolescents 12 years of age in all of Spain. But the CAV-AEP also recommended that the vaccine of meningococcal C from 12 months to be replaced by this more complete version which includes the serotypes A, W, and Y. “This guideline, 12 months and 12 years, performed, funded, Castile and León, and in 2020 it is expected that the fund in Andalusia”, points out to ABC dr. Francisco Alvarez.
Differences between communities
When the powers on Health care transferred, some communities have decided unilaterally to extend their calendars and to fund vaccines that are not in other regions. “All the children of Spain should have the same access to vaccines. Our recommendation is directed to fund vaccines in its maximum degree,” says the coordinator of the CAV-AEP.
The expert reminds that this situation of inequity already experienced previously with the vaccine of the pneumococcus and chicken pox , which finally ended up entering in the calendar, funded of all of the autonomous communities. All of these vaccines have been shown to be “ safe and effective , ” says dr. Francisco Alvarez. In fact, it has already been introduced in the calendars of the Uk, Ireland or Lithuania; and ACWY in the Uk, the Netherlands, Italy or Australia, “showing good results”, he says.
Regarding the movement antivacunas , the doctor Pineda asks parents to think about the health of their offspring, the children who are not vaccinated due to their age or due to a chronic illness or immunosuppressive treatment have been left without defenses. “ collective protection is achieved only with vaccination rates above 90% “, warns the president of the pediatricians catalans.
