Organization or Community-Based Outbreak? Responding to Cases of Meningitis Under Epidemiologic Uncertainty

Six cases of serogroup C invasive meningococcal disease were identified in Treviso district, Veneto region, Italy between December 13 and 15, 2007. The afflicted patients were found to have attended the same Latin-dance clubs on the same nights, and chemoprophylaxis was provided to potentially exposed individuals. Despite these efforts, 2 cases caused by the same meningococcal strain subsequently occurred in the same area, without any apparent epidemiological correlation to the initial cases. This may have resulted from a failure to neutralize the meningococcal carrier/s. The root cause analysis method applied to public health emergency preparedness was used to analyze the response to this critical incident. The root cause analysis revealed a need to develop regional guidelines for the classification and management of a meningococcal outbreak and for developing risk-communication strategies that include the identification of appropriate channels of communication for differing segments of the population. (Disaster Med Public Health Preparedness. 2019;13:368-371).