The Ministry of Health said that it has recorded 24 cases of meningococcus nationwide, including 4 deaths in the first 3 months of the year, an increase compared to the same period last year, so it warns of the risk of an epidemic outbreak.
As a mother with an 18-month-old child, Ms. Nguyen Thanh Phuong, Thong Tay Hoi ward, Ho Chi Minh City, proactively took her child to Go Vap General Hospital for meningococcal meningitis vaccination. According to Ms. Phuong, her child has been vaccinated with many doses of the disease since birth, especially the ACYW meningococcal meningitis vaccine, the baby has not been vaccinated, and this dose is only given once in her life. Seeing that the epidemic showed signs of tension, Ms. Phuong took her child for a full dose to hope that her child would develop immunity to prevent the disease.
Not only Ms. Phuong, according to records at many vaccination units, the number of people going for ACYW meningococcal meningitis vaccine has increased sharply.
At VNVC Hoang Van Thu Vaccination Center (HCMC), Hoang Huong (21 years old), a university student, said that recently, when she heard information about some cases of meningococcal meningitis in young people, she was quite worried. "The disease progresses quickly, it can be critical after only a few hours, so I decided to get vaccinated early," Ms. Huong shared.
Doctor Bach Thi Chinh, Medical Director of the VNVC Vaccination System, said that meningococcal disease can occur at any age and easily breaks out into epidemics in crowded areas such as dormitories, apartments, kindergartens, schools or industrial parks. Notably, a person can carry bacteria in the pharynx area for many months without symptoms, becoming an unidentifiable source of infection.
According to the Vietnam Preventive Medicine Association, about 10-20% of healthy people carry meningococcal bacteria. This rate is highest in adolescents and young people, fluctuating from 25-32%, and can even reach 50% during epidemics. The average bacteria carrying time is about 9 months, of which nearly 40% of cases can last longer than 16 months. This shows that the pathogen can silently circulate in the community.
Teenagers are considered a high-risk group due to frequent collective activities, sharing items and having habits of staying up late, smoking, drinking alcohol or inadequate nutrition, causing the immune system to decline. Analysis from 89 studies in 28 countries shows that the disease-carrying rate peaks at 23.7% in the age of 19, meaning that 1 in 4 teenagers may carry bacteria without knowing it.
According to Dr. Bach Thi Chinh, meningococcal bacteria can cause disease in anyone who is not immune, especially young children, students, teenagers, the elderly and people with immune deficiency. Currently, Vietnam circulates 5 serum groups A, B, C, Y, W simultaneously, while each type of vaccine only prevents one or several specific groups.
Therefore, experts recommend that people should get combined meningococcal group B and ACYW vaccines to increase protection effectiveness. In addition, it is necessary to get vaccinated early, on schedule and in sufficient doses so that the body can create immunity in time.
