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Meningococcal disease: risk for international travellers and vaccine strategies

Annelies Wilder-Smith1

  • 1Department of Medicine, National University of Singapore, 117597 Singapore, Singapore. epvws@pacific.net.sg

Travel Medicine and Infectious Disease
|June 24, 2008
PubMed

Insights

International travel spreads meningococcal disease globally. A new tetravalent conjugate vaccine offers improved, long-term protection against multiple serogroups, benefiting infants and travelers.

Area of Science:

  • Epidemiology and Public Health
  • Vaccinology
  • Infectious Diseases

Background:

  • International travel and migration are key drivers for the intercontinental spread of meningococcal disease.
  • Historically, serogroups A and C caused epidemics, but W135 has emerged recently, requiring attention, while X and Y show rising trends.
  • Significant geographical and temporal variations exist in meningococcal disease incidence and serogroup distribution, necessitating adaptable vaccine strategies.

Purpose of the Study:

  • To review the epidemiology of meningococcal disease, focusing on serogroup distribution and trends.
  • To evaluate current and novel vaccine strategies for meningococcal disease control, particularly for travelers and endemic regions.
  • To highlight the advantages of the new tetravalent conjugate vaccine over older polysaccharide vaccines.

Main Methods:

  • Literature review of meningococcal disease epidemiology and vaccine efficacy.
  • Comparative analysis of tetravalent polysaccharide and conjugate meningococcal vaccines.
  • Summary of current vaccine recommendations for specific populations.

Main Results:

  • Meningococcal disease epidemiology varies significantly by region and time, with shifts in dominant serogroups.
  • Tetravalent polysaccharide vaccines have limitations in infants and long-term protection.
  • The novel tetravalent conjugate vaccine demonstrates superior immunogenicity in infants, provides long-term protection, and reduces nasopharyngeal carriage.

Conclusions:

  • The tetravalent conjugate meningococcal vaccine represents a significant advancement for controlling epidemics and improving traveler vaccination.
  • This conjugate vaccine overcomes limitations of polysaccharide vaccines, offering better immunogenicity and longer-lasting protection.
  • Updated vaccine recommendations should consider the benefits of conjugate vaccines for broad population protection and travel health.

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