Meningitis in fatal Kent outbreak identified as less-targeted strain B | Kent

Government scientists have identified the strain of meningitis behind a deadly outbreak in Kent as one for which most people are not vaccinated.

Gayatri Amirthalingam, deputy director of immunization and vaccine-preventable diseases at the UK Health Safety Agency (UKHSA), said tests showed that the disease was caused by the B bacterial strain.

Speaking to BBC Radio 5 Live, he said: “Based on some tests this morning, we can say that it was the group B meningococcal strain that caused the outbreak in Kent.”

Amirthalingam confirmed that this is a strain that most people have not been vaccinated against. “We have a meningococcal vaccine that covers four different strains in young people. It is usually given at age 13 or 14. It covers four main groups: A, C, W and Y.”

Amirthalingam urged young people in Kent to take up the offer of antibiotics. Asked if it was safe for students to return home, he said: “If you are a university student and you have been offered antibiotics, or anyone else who has been offered antibiotics, please take it immediately; it will be absolutely fine for you to return home. This is an effective precaution to protect both yourself and your loved ones, family and friends.”

People born before 2015 are not protected against meningitis B unless they have received the vaccine specifically. The vaccine was introduced on the NHS for babies in 2015.

In the UK, specific meningitis B vaccines cost between £100 and £120 per dose, and a full two-dose vaccine costs around £200 to £240. Boots offers two doses for £220.

A 13th grade student from Faversham, who was named Juliette at the request of her family, and an unnamed student from the University of Kent died in the epidemic, while others are being treated in hospital.

Archbishop of Canterbury Sarah Mullally said: “My prayers go out to the families of the two young men who tragically lost their lives in the meningitis outbreak in Kent. My heart goes out to them at this devastating loss.

“I also pray for everyone affected by the outbreak and all those working hard to care for them and protect local communities.”

The UKHSA is advising anyone who visited Club Chemistry in Canterbury on March 5, 6 or 7 to come forward for preventative antibiotic treatment as a “precautionary measure”.

Amirthalingam also confirmed that a hospitalized sick mother could also spread the disease by sharing e-cigarettes. He suspected his daughter had caught it from e-cigarettes..

Amirthalingam said: “Meningococcal disease spreads in a number of different ways. Vaping is just one of them. It is very much linked to close contact. There are many other activities that can encourage the spread of this infection. Not least vaping.”

Eliza Gil, clinical lecturer specializing in infectious diseases at the London School of Hygiene and Tropical Medicine, said: “These students will not have any immunity to meningitis B.”

“Students are not currently offered this because the risk has been historically low and also because the protection is imperfect and not very long-lasting. Therefore, on the balance of risk, it was felt that routinely giving men the B vaccine would not benefit students,” he told 5 Live.

Gil said of vaping: “Sharing anything that goes into your mouth is a potential risk factor for transmission of an oral-dwelling bacteria. So I would definitely not recommend vaping from a general hygiene standpoint. But in this context, it seems easy enough to stop doing it, even if we’re not sure if it’s causal in this case.”

Helen Whately, Conservative MP for Faversham and Mid Kent, called on the government to consider a “grown-up” vaccination campaign for young people.

Speaking to Times Radio, former health minister Whately said vaccinations against meningitis B have been given to babies since 2015, but those affected by the current outbreak “will not be vaccinated in this way as babies because they were born before that”.

He said: “One of the things the UKHSA will need to look at is whether there is a greater risk now from this outbreak and whether some form of vaccine may become available for this group in the future.”

UKHSA denied any delays in response to the outbreak.

Speaking to Radio 4’s Today programme, Amirthalingam said: “I don’t believe there was any delay in the public health response. With these people, some of whom are extremely unwell in hospital, it can be difficult trying to get detailed follow-up information, but it was done very quickly over the weekend to be able to provide that information and identify the links within 24 hours.”

Prof Paul Hunter, an infectious diseases expert at the University of East Anglia, said doctors could have been informed about the epidemic earlier.

“The point is not just to inform the public. The symptoms of the disease can be very mild. If they are present,” he said. [doctors] They are more likely to take these early signs seriously if they know there is a problem with meningococcal disease in the area.

“The problem with meningococcal disease is that you can go from relatively mild illness to death within a few hours. It is critical that you state this information very clearly in a very short time.”

He added: “When I did this job a few years ago, when we notified local GPs that there was a problem like this we would make it public and it could have been quicker.”

While two facilities to collect antibiotics in Kent are open to the public, two more facilities are planned to open on Tuesday morning.

Louise Jones-Roberts, owner of Club Chemistry, told the Press Association more than 2,000 people would visit the venue over the three dates.