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Three of seven MenW-related deaths in the country this year occurred in Northland, including a 7-year-old girl and a teenager.
"According to clinical experts, MenW has reached the outbreak level in Northland and we should urgently launch a vaccination program to prevent the spread of the disease," said Minister of Health David today. Clark.
The number of MenW cases has increased from five in 2016 to 29 this year, including seven in Northland.
The people of Northland will not have to pay for the vaccine.
The vaccination program will begin December 5 in some high schools and community centers in Northland. It will target people aged 9 months to four years (inclusive) and those aged 13 to 19 years (inclusive).
Pharmac and the Ministry of Health have purchased 20,000 doses covering four types of meningococcal disease, including A, C, W and Y. The cost is commercially sensitive, but the deployment of the vaccination program would cost $ 700,000.
Health General Director Ashley Bloomfield said Northland was informed on November 6 of the possibility of an outbreak and that a technical advisory group announced two days later that it was There was indeed an epidemic.
He added that people had succumbed to MenW at the age of 11 months and at the age of 61, but that teens had the highest chances of being carriers of the disease and that children under 5 were most at risk.
To be eligible, the child must be a resident of Northland.
"The best way to protect all age groups is to stop the transport of the bacteria," Bloomfield said.
"If we get the advice we need to deploy it further, we will look carefully at these tips."
He defended the time needed to announce the answer, saying that it had taken time to get 20,000 doses of vaccine – Australia and the United States already being coping with epidemics – and to set up the program.
"It is certainly enough to vaccinate these two populations at this Christmas time, and we will obviously be watching very closely what is going on."
MenW was transported down the throat and spread by close contact. Bloomfield added that people in Northland were exposed to conditions that made them more vulnerable to MenW, such as poverty, overcrowding and proximity.
He said people could not be forced to get vaccinated, but he hoped that 80% of people in the target groups would be vaccinated, which would prevent the virus from being transported.
Pharmac has been closely monitored by other sources of vaccine in case others are needed, he added.
Since January, 10 people have died of meningococci, including seven from MenW.
Among them, Alexis Albert, aged 7, from Whangarei, whose mother in mourning advocated for a national immunization and awareness program, and Dion Hodder, 16, from Kerikeri, who died at the hospital, Auckland City shortly after falling ill at the Motutapu Island youth camp. .
Nick Chamberlain, Managing Director of Northland DHB, said that there had been four cases in the area in September and October.
"There was no link between the cases and they belong to groups of ages, geographical regions and mauris and New Zealanders Europeans.
"We hope that more vaccines will be available to vaccinate the entire population under the age of 20, as we did in 2011 with the meningococcal C vaccination program.
"However, in the run-up to Christmas, vaccinating 20,000 children and young people before they go on vacation will be a real logistical challenge."
The location of the clinics will be confirmed as soon as possible, he said.
Meningococcal disease is a bacterial infection that causes meningitis – an infection of the membranes that covers the brain – and sepsis or blood poisoning.
Although meningococcus B (MenB) has long been the dominant strain in New Zealand, at the origin of two thirds of cases, the development of MenW raised more and more concerns.
The proportion of MenB cases has increased from 67% in 2017 to 49% since the beginning of the year, while MenW rates have increased from 11% to 28%.
Medical experts say MenW may be different from other strains, including serious respiratory infections such as pneumonia and, more importantly, gastrointestinal symptoms in adults.
Meningococcal bacteria are hard to catch because they do not live long outside the body, but are transmitted from one person to another by secretions from the nose or throat.
Within three to seven days after exposure to the virus, meningococcal disease is usually felt as soon as a high fever appears and is easily confused with other flu and common diseases.
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