By Adam LoBelia
A new meningitis vaccination has been developed that will further marginalize the illness, especially for college students residing on campus.
The vaccine promises to bring a significant upgrade to the immunization efforts against meningitis. The old vaccine, which was effective for only five years, did not prevent those inoculated from being carriers of the disease. The new vaccine is effective for eight years, and prevents a person from being a carrier, said Dr. Natalie Leviashvili, a pediatrician at Mercy Medical Center in Rockville Centre, N.Y.
“Since the new vaccine extends longer, people will not have to receive it every year, like the flu shot,” Leviashvili said, adding that she does not foresee a shortage of the new vaccine.
Maureen Houck, the director of the Health and Wellness Center, said the University is considering getting the new vaccine, although no decision has been made. If the University decides to get the vaccine would be available to students in late spring.
According to New York State Law, “Students are not required to take the new vaccine,” she said, but the Wellness Center is required to notify students about the disease and the vaccine.
Meningitis is a disease that affects the membranes covering the brain and spinal cord. It is a very serious illness that can lead to death if untreated and merely being infected with it is enough to warrant a medical emergency. Even if death does not occur, the victim can suffer amputations or permanent brain damage according to the website for the American Academy of Pediatrics.
People suffering from meningitis usually have symptoms such as headaches, neck stiffness and sensitivity to light. It can also alter the state of the infected person’s consciousness. Infection usually passes from close contact, in which fluids can pass from one person to the next, Dr. Leviashvili said. This includes kissing, sneezing and the touching of objects handled by an infected person.
Although vaccinations have widely eliminated the disease from infecting children, adults are still susceptible. The disease tends to strike those living in close-quarters, which is why the disease has a high incidence amongst college students, Leviashvili said.
“Anyone living in close quarters, such as college students, would be candidates for the vaccine,” Leviashvili said.
The Center for Disease Control strongly recommended that all college students who live in dorms should receive the new vaccine, since the strain that goes through college dorms kills around 300 students every year.
The University has not seen many cases of the disease, Houck said.
“In seven years there were only two cases. It is not an easy disease to contract, but it is more prevalent in first year students without immunizations,” she said.