Could Public Health Problem from Meningococcal Disease Be Eliminated?

Peoples living in the 26 countries across the meningeal belt of Sub-Saharan Africa that stretches from Senegal to Ethiopia suffer from repeated epidemics of meningococcal disease. Literatures showed that epidemic meningococcal disease has been present in the stated region for more than 100 years. Though over 80% of cases of the African epidemics are associated with Neisseria meningitides serogroup A; in recent years, there is increasing evidence of serogroup W-135 being associated with outbreaks. Epidemics commonly occur during the dry season (December to June in cycles of 5-12 years. When occur, epidemics of meningococcal meningitis in Africa affect hundreds of thousands and kill many thousands of people. In the most recent epidemic in 2009 nearly 90,000 suspected cases and over 50000 deaths were reported from 14 African countries in the belt.