Meningococcal Vaccines

Neisseria meningitidis (the meningococcus) is a Gram-negative diplococcus, which causes meningitis and septicaemia with a high case fatality rate and many survivors suffering from long-term neurological and non-neurological complications. In Europe, it is typically a rare endemic disease, but hyperendemic and epidemic disease patterns also occur. Prevention of disease through vaccination is the only realistic prospect for disease control. Vaccines targeting five of the six disease-causing capsular groups (A, B, C, W and Y) are in use across Europe, with significant reductions in disease rates in the last two decades. Further developments such as the recent emergence of capsular group X in sub-Saharan Africa, for which there is currently no licensed vaccine, demonstrate that vaccine prevention of meningococcal disease is an ongoing and evolving challenge.