Vaccination campaign following an increase in incidence of serogroup C meningococcal diseases in the department of Puy-de-Dôme (France)

Abstract

In the department of Puy-de-Dôme, France, 17 cases of invasive meningococcal disease C were notified between March 2001 and the first week of 2002. Among the 15 confirmed cases, 11 (73%) were serogroup C, 2 (13%) serogroup B, and 2 could not be identified. The rapid increase in the number of cases in a period of low endemicity for the rest of the country and the severity of the disease (case fatality ratio 27%, purpura fulminans 64%) led the health authorities to initiate a vaccination campaign targeting children and young adults from 2 months up to 20 years living in a limited area of the department. Around 80 000 people were immunised between 16/01/02 and 09/02/02. More than half of the 1390 immediate side effects were headache and dizziness. As of mid-March, no further case of meningococcal disease has been notified since 6 January.

Conserved virulence of C to B capsule switched Neisseria meningitidis clinical isolates belonging to ET-37/ST-11 clonal complex

“…In France, such invasive B isolates were rarely isolated before 2003 and most differ substantially from those of the ET-37/ST-11 clonal complex (our unpublished data). There was a vaccination campaign against serogroup C in 2001-2002 in several Départements in France where the incidence of this serogroup had increased [16,17]. Almost all B:2a:P1.5 strains isolated in France in 2003-2004 belonged to the ET-37/ST-11 clonal complex.…”

“…This gave a local incidence of 1.7/100,000 inhabitants, compared to the national incidence of 0.3/100,000 for serogroup C during the same period. Five of the serogroup C isolates clustered in the ET-37/S-T11 clonal complex [16]. The second outbreak lasted from January to August 2002 in three departments of the southwest of France [17], where 25 of the 30 cases were due to serogroup C isolates (local incidence 2.2/100,000 compared to the national incidence of 0.26/100,000), the five others being of serogroup B with diverse phenotypes.…”

Association of Meningococcal Phenotypes and Genotypes With Clinical Characteristics and Mortality of Meningitis in Children

“…35 This strategy is being regularly evaluated and our work could contribute to a possible modification of French recommendations. As in most other European countries, serogroup B accounted for most invasive meningococcal infections in our study (62.3% overall).…”

Meningococcal group C disease in Greece during 1993–2006: the impact of an unofficial single-dose vaccination scheme adopted by most paediatricians

“…Although this reduction may be the result of a natural variation in meningococcal disease epidemiology, it is likely that the introduction of vaccine contributed considerably to the reduction. In France, a vaccination campaign triggered by a rapid increase in cases of serogroup C disease resulted in no new cases [3], while surveillance following the introduction of the vaccine in Spain revealed a reduction in the incidence of serogroup C disease [4]. In locations where recent outbreaks have been reported, e.g., Quebec, Canada, an expanded vaccination strategy might be needed [5].…”