Let's talk infectious diseases, the reason for vaccines: ᴹᵉⁿⁱⁿᵍᵒᶜᵒᶜᶜᵃˡ ᵈⁱˢᵉᵃˢᵉ

Meningococcal disease is any illness caused by the bacteria Neisseria meningitidis, also known as meningococcus. These illnesses include meningitis and bloodstream infections (bacteremia or septicemia). There are six types of Neisseria meningitidis — A, B, C, W, X, and Y — that cause most disease worldwide. Three of these serogroups (B, C, and Y) cause most of the illness seen in the United States.

These bacteria spread through the exchange of respiratory and throat secretions like spit (e.g., by living in close quarters, kissing). The bacteria causes two major infections: Meningococcal Meningitis and Meningococcal Septicemia (aka Meningococcemia).

When someone has meningococcal meningitis, the bacteria infect the lining of the brain and spinal cord and cause swelling. Symptoms include:

▪️Fever

▪️Headache

▪️Stiff neck

▪️Nausea

▪️Vomiting

▪️Photophobia (eyes being more sensitive to light)

▪️Altered mental status (confusion)

When someone has meningococcal septicemia, the bacteria enter the bloodstream and multiply, damaging the walls of the blood vessels. This causes bleeding into the skin and organs. Symptoms include:

▪️Fever and chills

▪️Fatigue

▪️Vomiting

▪️Cold hands and feet

▪️Severe aches or pain in the muscles, joints, chest, or abdomen (belly)

▪️Rapid breathing

▪️Diarrhea

▪️In the later stages, a dark purple rash

Meningococcal disease can be difficult to diagnose because the signs and symptoms are often similar to those of other illnesses. Doctors treat meningococcal disease with a number of antibiotics. It is important that treatment start as soon as possible as these diseases are severe and can be deadly.

Depending on how serious the infection is, people with meningococcal disease may need other treatments, including:

▪️Breathing support

▪️Medications to treat low BP

▪️Surgery to remove dead tissue

▪️Wound care for parts of the body with damaged skin

Even with antibiotic treatment, 10 to 15 in 100 people infected with meningococcal disease will die. Up to 1 in 5 survivors will have long-term disabilities, such as loss of limb(s), deafness, nervous system problems, or brain damage.

In 1974 a new approach to vaccine science was introduced through a series of meningococcal polysaccharide vaccines developed by Maurice Hilleman and his team.

Polysaccharide vaccines did not use live or attenuated pathogens, but rather the polysaccharide (complex sugar) outer coating of these bacteria.

The first vaccine -- meningococcal polysaccharide vaccine or MPSV4 -- was approved in 1978. An improved vaccine, the meningococcal conjugate vaccine or MCV4 was approved in 2005. It uses antigens taken from the polysaccharide capsule and then bound to a separate protein that targets the body's immune cells. This makes it easier for the body's immune system to see and recognize the antigens. Both vaccines protect against four types of meningococcal disease. In 2015, two serogroup B vaccines were given approval and protect against the other two forms of meningococcal disease.

All of these vaccines are about 85-90% effective in preventing meningococcal disease.

{You can find all the sources I used by clicking here.}