Summer Meningitis: A Growing Concern Amid Hot Weather

Meningitis, a severe central nervous system infection that can cause death or leave high sequelae, is a growing concern during the hot summer months. According to Dr. Tran Huynh Tan, Medical Manager of VNVC Vaccination System, meningitis appears sporadically all year round but increases during the hot season due to favorable conditions for pathogens to multiply and develop.

Pneumococcal meningitis has a high mortality rate and can cause severe sequelae. The US Centers for Disease Control and Prevention (CDC) reports that pneumococcal meningitis causes more than 50% of cases of bacterial meningitis, leading to about 2,000 cases recorded in the US each year. In Vietnam, pneumococcus is the leading cause of meningitis. The disease can progress very quickly, with a mortality rate of over 50% when not treated promptly. About 30-50% of people who recover from the disease face serious sequelae like deafness, blindness, paralysis, epilepsy, mental retardation, poor memory, and persistent headaches.

Vaccination is an active prevention measure for pneumococcal meningitis and its complications. Up to 97% effectiveness has been achieved with vaccines starting from 2-month-old children to adults. It helps reduce hospitalization rates, shorten treatment time and lower medical costs compared to non-vaccinated groups. Vaccines also aid in reducing the percentage of healthy people carrying the infection and limit the spread of pneumococcal infection in the community.

Meningococcus is another common cause of meningitis during summer months due to its association with extreme weather conditions that reduce resistance and promote multiplication of bacteria. All age groups are susceptible to meningococcus infection but children under five years old display a higher incidence rate. Symptoms include fever, severe headache, nausea/vomiting/diarrhea/abdominal pain/severe neck stiffness/star-shaped purpura (death rash)/drowsiness/coma. Meningococcus causes severe illness with a high mortality rate – approximately 15% despite intensive treatment – and permanent sequelae such as hearing loss or brain damage in up to 20% of survivors.