After the COVID-19 epidemic was brought under control, activities returned to normal, and students returned to school to increase their exposure, while the meningococcal vaccination was interrupted in the past time. Unvaccinated subjects such as infants under 6 months of age and adolescents who have not received a booster dose of the vaccine are at very high risk of infection.
According to Assoc. Prof. TS.BS Cao Huu Nghia – Lecturer in Microbiology and Immunization Safety, Pasteur Institute in Ho Chi Minh City, many parents are not fully aware of vaccinations for teenagers, but only focus on injections. vaccination for young children.
In fact, the proportion of adolescents who have not been vaccinated against meningococcal disease is still quite high. Meanwhile, adolescents are the group with the highest risk of infection because they regularly participate in social activities, play and study.
Every year, the whole country records about 50-100 cases Encephalitis spherical tissue. The number of cases is not high, but it is considered one of the most dangerous diseases. According to previous surveys, 1 in 5 teenagers examined will have a case of Neisseria meningitidis (meningococcal bacteria). Figures from the US CDC show that every year around the world, about 1.2 million cases are detected.
Along with that, the mortality rate of meningococcal infections is up to 50% if not treated promptly. Even with adequate diagnosis and treatment, the mortality rate in this disease remains in the range of 5-15%. If the patient survives, he may still experience severe sequelae such as brain damage, deafness, disability…
Meningococcal disease is a dangerous disease that can progress very quickly, patients can die within 24-48 hours after the onset of the disease.
4-month-old baby amputated due to meningococcal infection
According to TS.BS Nguyen An Nghia – Deputy Department of Infection – Neurology, Children’s Hospital 1, Ho Chi Minh City, said that the hospital has just received 2 cases of meningococcal disease. A 4-year-old patient died after 6 hours of admission.
A 4.5-month-old child was admitted to the hospital with high fever 12 hours after symptom onset. A few hours later, the baby had a state of shock, a rash appeared on the skin. Along with respiratory failure, the doctors had to put the baby on a ventilator, using many high-dose antibiotics. By day 5, the baby was out of danger.
However, after the treatment, the male patient had to face serious sequelae and affect later life. Specifically, the baby had a right limb amputated to the knee, along with many left toes and some fingers.
Besides the sequelae of amputation, children with meningococcal infection may experience severe sequelae such as cerebral palsy, paralysis, meningitis, septic shock, pericarditis, psychomotor retardation. acute kidney failure, liver damage, sepsis, pneumonia… Even children can die within 24-48 hours
Sick in season, parents need to pay special attention
Meningococcal disease is an annual disease worldwide. The disease usually breaks out at the time of season change between the dry and rainy seasons. Currently, the South of Vietnam is in the time of changing seasons, so this is the time when meningococcal disease develops, the risk of infection is high.
Dr.BS Nguyen An Nghia said: “Meningococcal disease is an acute bacterial infection caused by the bacteria Neisseria meningitidis. The period from June to October is the time when meningococcal disease develops the strongest, so Parents should pay special attention to groups of children at high risk of infection such as children under 5 years of age and adolescents aged 10-16. However, we should not ignore this because this is a disease that everyone All age groups can be affected.
In the first 8 hours, children will appear fever, mental instability, irritability, nausea, vomiting, drowsiness, loss of appetite, runny nose, body aches.
In the next 9-15 hours the child will begin to develop a rash, bleeding, stiff neck, and photophobia.
In 16-24 hours the child will experience a coma, delirium, convulsions, loss of consciousness and the child may die during this period.
It is worth noting that the younger the child, the harder it is to detect the signs of the disease. The disease progresses rapidly and leaves many serious sequels for patients, the most common are meningitis, disability, brain damage, deafness… Therefore, parents need to pay special attention to their children to detect them. Identify the earliest warning signs for timely treatment, helping children avoid serious sequelae.
Doctor Huu Nghia also recommended: “The group of teenagers and high carriers of the disease should be fully vaccinated against the disease to both protect themselves and avoid infecting people around. Vaccines against diseases every 10 years help maintain antibodies against disease.
The US CDC and the Vietnam Association of Preventive Medicine have recommended this booster vaccination for children and adolescents to help create herd immunity, preventing the emergence and spread of diseases.
at Blogtuan.info – Source: Eva.vn – Read the original article here
