Meningococcal infections vaccination

The use of a few vaccines is reserved for individuals who travel to areas of the world where these vaccine-preventable infections are common. Immunization is only a part of travel medicine. Recommendations for the use of hepatitis A and hepatitis B vaccines can be found in Chap. 40. Meningococcal polysaccharide vaccine is recommended for seasonal travel in sub-Saharan Africa, and the use of this vaccine was described earlier in this chapter. 

Baudner, B.C., Morandi, M., Giuliani, M.M. et al. 2004. Modulation of immune response to group C meningococcal conjugate vaccine given intranasally to mice together with the LTK63 mucosal adjuvant and the trimethyl chitosan delivery system. J. Infect. Dis. 189 828-832. 

Infection risk Some have hypothesized that the simultaneous administration of combinations of vaccines might overload the immune system and therefore facilitate the development of bacterial and viral infections. In a case-series analysis of bacterial and viral infections during risk periods of 0-30, 31-60, and 61-90 days after the administration of either MMR vaccine or MMR vaccine plus serogroup C meningococcal conjugate vaccine (given... 

Wyle FA, Artenstein MS, Brandt BL, Tramont EC, Kasper DL, Altieri PL, Berman SL, Lowenthal JP (1972) Immunologic response of man to group B meningococcal polysaccharide vaccines. J Infect Dis 126 514—521... 

Siberry GK, Warshaw MG, WUUams PL, Spector SA, Decker MD, Jean-PhUippe P, et al. Safety and immunogenicity of quadrivalent meningococcal conjugate vaccine in 2- to 10-year-old human immunodeficiency virus-infected children. Pediatr Infect Dis J 2012 31(l) 47-52. 

Cross, A.S., Opal, S.M., Warren, H.S., Palardy, J.E., Glaser, K., Parejo, N.A., Bhattacharjee, A.K. Active immunization with a detoxified Escherichia coli 35 lipopolysaccharide group B meningococcal outer membrane protein complex vaccine protects animals from experimental sepsis. J Infect Dis 183 (2001) 1079-1086. 

It is recommended that sickle cell patients receive vaccination to help prevent infection, the BNF recommends the following vaccines for those with splenic dysfunction Haemophilus influenzae type b, meningococcal group C, pneumococcal, influenza. 

Meningococcal vaccine (quadrivalent polysaccharide for serogroups A, C, Y, and W-135)—Consider vaccination for persons with medical indications adults with terminal complement component deficiencies, with anatomic or functional asplenia. Other indications travelers to countries in which disease is hyperendemic or epidemic ("meningitis belt" of sub-Saharan Africa, Mecca, Saudi Arabia for Hajj). Revaccination at 3-5 years may be indicated for persons at high risk for infection (e.g., persons residing in areas in which disease is epidemic). 

Barton M, Finkelstein Y, Opavsky MA, Ito S, Ho T, Ford-Jones LE, Taylor G, Benson L, Gold R. Eosinophilic myocarditis temporally associated with conjugate meningococcal C and hepatitis B vaccines in children. Pediatr Infect Dis J 2008 27 831-5. 

BertoUni DV, Costa LS, van der Heijden IM, Sato HK, de Sousa Marques HH. Immunogenicity of a meningococcal serogroup C conjugate vaccine in HIV-infected children, adolescents, and young adults. Vaccine 2012 30(37) 5482-6. 

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