Meningococcal infections in Scotland 1972–82

Abstract

SUMMARYStrains of Neisseria meningitidis isolated from patients with meningitis or septicaemia without meningitis in Scotland during the years 1972-82 have been reviewed together with details of the age, sex, disease and outcome of the patients from whom they were isolated. A total of 1185 strains were isolated, of which 927 were examined at the Meningococcal Reference Laboratory (Scotland): 19-3 % were of serogroup A, 63 % of group B, 9-6 % of group C, 6 % of W135 and 1-6 % of other groups. Non-groupable strains were rare. Disease was most common in the first years of life but there was a difference in the age distribution of disease due to the different serogroups, the proportion of disease due to group B being smaller in adults than that due to other serogroups. The overall mortality in meningitis was 7-5 % and in septicaemia was 20-6 %, although there were differences between the rates for the various serogroups. The serogroup distribution differed in disease as opposed to meningococci isolated from carriers although group B strains were predominant in both series. Overall, approximately 15 % of strains were resistant to sulphadiazine, the proportion of resistant group A strains being higher than that of other serogroups.

Patterns of meningococcal infection in Sudan with emergence of Neisseria meningitidis serogroup W135

“…During the epidemic period it was obvious that the disease spread among adults more than children ≤ 15 years in a very odd phenomenon of infection. This has been observed in Scotland [16], Canada [17], and the United States of America [18], where similar increases in meningococcal disease, with a shift to infection of older age groups, have been reported.…”

Smoking, the environment and meningococcal disease: a case control study

“…Disease risk decreases with age and is inversely related to the presence of bactericidal antibodies [6]. Genetic factors may determine whether infection results in disease; in the United States and in the UK males are at higher risk than females [7][8][9]; inherited complement deficiencies increase susceptibility to pathogenic and non-pathogenic strains ofN. meningitidis [10], and non-secretors of ABO blood group antigens may be more susceptible [11].…”

Outbreak of W135 Meningococcal Disease in 2000: Not Emergence of a New W135 Strain but Clonal Expansion within the Electophoretic Type–37 Complex

“…Neisseria meningitidis serogroup W135 (MenW135) is associated with 1%-8% of all cases of sporadic meningococcal disease worldwide [1][2][3][4][5][6], and the proportion of healthy carriers in the general population ranges from ,1% to 10% [7,8]. MenW135 is generally considered to have low potential to cause invasive disease or outbreaks; only a few clusters, each of ,10 cases, have been reported to date [9].…”