Surveillance of bacterial meningitis, Ethiopia, 2012–2013
Mihret, Wude; Lema, Tsehaynesh; Merid, Yared; Kassu, Afework; Abebe, Workeabeba; Moges, Beyene; Tenna, Admasu; Woldegebriel, Fitsum; Yidnekachew, Melaku; Mekonnen, Wondale; Yamuah, Lawrence; Ahmed, Arslan; Silamsaw, Mezgebu; Petros, Beyene; Oksnes, Jan; Rosenqvist, Einar; Ayele, Samuel; Caugant, Dominique A; Aseffa, Abraham; Norheim, Gunnstein
Peer reviewed, Journal article
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Date
2016Metadata
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Abstract
Ethiopia has the second-largest population (≈94 million in 2013) among the meningitis belt countries of sub-Saharan Africa (1). However, during 2001–2010, a median of only 1,056 suspected meningitis cases per year (range 5–8,571/year) was reported to the World Health Organization (2). The largest meningitis epidemics occurred in 1981 (3) and 1989 (4), resulting in ≈45,000 and ≈50,000 cases, respectively. Serogroup A meningococci were the major cause of these epidemics, although serogroup C strains were also identified in 1981, 1983–84, and during outbreaks in 2000 and 2003 (5). Conjugate vaccines against Haemophilus influenzae serotype b, Streptococcus pneumoniae (pneumococcal conjugate vaccine [PCV] 10), and Neisseria meningitidis serogroup A (MenAfriVac) were introduced in 2007, 2011, and 2013–2015, respectively. Because data permitting assessment of these vaccines are limited, we implemented a surveillance study.