In this article I will discuss the importance of taking a meningitis vaccine or routine immunization which can prevent meningitis.


Meningitis vaccine
During childhood, young children are vaccinated against bacteria and viruses and microorganisms like pneumococcus, meningococcus, polio, mumps, measles, HIB etc which will serve to protect the individual against meningitis, the risk factor of which is one of these microorganisms.



There are some children who are susceptible to other kinds of bacterial and viral infections and so they need to be immunized or vaccinated against other specific varieties of pneumococcus.
Who is eligible to receive this vaccine?


Physicians/medicos are now of the opinion that 11 year old children are old enough to get vaccinated against meningococcus that can lead to a severe deadly kind of bacterial meningitis. The name of this particular type of vaccine is MCV4 or quadrivalent meningococcal vaccine. There is no problem if the children have crossed 11 years of age and still not received immunization. They can be vaccinated even then.


This vaccine is mandatory if the child is going away to a boarding school or college or to a summer camp or for trekking adventures where there will be a bunch of young guys and girls staying together in close quarters. If any individual is traveling to a country where meningitis outbreaks occur frequently, then also vaccination is a prerequisite.


Apart from vaccination, another way of preventing meningitis is by maintaining good hygiene like washing hands, not sharing utensils, drinks , food items with a person suffering from meningitis, keeping the toilet clean, covering the mouth while coughing or sneezing, not leaving nasal or throat discharge lying open on the roads or public places etc.


Meningococcal meningitis vaccine
This type of meningitis or rather certain groups of it can be prevented through the vaccine – meningococcal polysaccharide. When an individual will receive this vaccine, his body will start manufacturing its own antibodies that will fight the meningococcal meningitis. Groups W 135, Y, C and A of the meningococcal bacteria can be fought with the help of this vaccine. However this vaccine will prove ineffective against group B.

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