Question on Hib vaccine

[ImtiazBahemia]

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Hello,

I don't know if this is the right section to post this question but here it is:

One of my lecturers recently mentioned that if in a house, there is only one child under 4 and he gets meningitis, only he needs to get vaccinated, if there is a second child under 4 and he get meningitis as well, then every one has to be vaccinated,even the parents since they might be carriers. Supposedly if we vaccinated only the 2 children, the second one under 4 might get meningitis again later..
I dont really understand the logic behind this? Maybe I misunderstood..Could anyone help me with that please?

Thank you,
Imtiaz

 

[Ezekiel20]

Hello,

I don't know if this is the right section to post this question but here it is:

One of my lecturers recently mentioned that if in a house, there is only one child under 4 and he gets meningitis, only he needs to get vaccinated, if there is a second child under 4 and he get meningitis as well, then every one has to be vaccinated,even the parents since they might be carriers. Supposedly if we vaccinated only the 2 children, the second one under 4 might get meningitis again later..
I dont really understand the logic behind this? Maybe I misunderstood..Could anyone help me with that please?

Thank you,
Imtiaz

Sounds to me like an arbitrary rule of thumb, made up with cost effectiveness in mind.

The decision to vaccinate or not depends on many factors, one of which is the causative organism of meningitis. If it was in fact viral meningitis (more common than bacterial), it is treated symptomatically, and there is no need for vaccination of the family.

If it's bacterial meningitis (an emergency), then the family is given high doses of antibiotics, and children may be given the Hib vaccine.

I don't know about the US, but in many countries, Hib vaccine is routinely given to infants during the first year of life. This has contributed to a sharp decrease in Hib meningitis world-wide, and most textbooks have been revised to take this into account.

 

[ImtiazBahemia]

Sounds to me like an arbitrary rule of thumb, made up with cost effectiveness in mind.

The decision to vaccinate or not depends on many factors, one of which is the causative organism of meningitis. If it was in fact viral meningitis (more common than bacterial), it is treated symptomatically, and there is no need for vaccination of the family.

If it's bacterial meningitis (an emergency), then the family is given high doses of antibiotics, and children may be given the Hib vaccine.

I don't know about the US, but in many countries, Hib vaccine is routinely given to infants during the first year of life. This has contributed to a sharp decrease in Hib meningitis world-wide, and most textbooks have been revised to take this into account.

Ok,thank you, I shall post another reply when I get the answer from my lecturer.