Mass vaccination for meningitis starts in South Sudan

March 1, 2007 (JUBA, Sudan) — Health workers have launched a mass meningitis vaccination campaign in southern Sudan, where 174 people have died from the disease this year, a World Health Organisation (WHO) official said on Thursday.

“All the payams (districts) that have crossed the epidemic threshold are either being vaccinated today, or we will be starting there next week,” said William Pera, a WHO coordinator for epidemic readiness and intervention.

Meningitis is an infection of the thin lining surrounding the brain and spinal cord. It is often transmitted by coughing or sneezing and can cause brain damage and deafness. According to WHO about five to 10 percent of cases are fatal

The government of southern Sudan and WHO have reported a total of 2,243 cases of suspected meningitis there since the beginning of the year, Pera said.

An international coordination group backed by WHO has so far delivered 300,000 of a promised 850,000 doses of vaccine in southern Sudan, said WHO official Abdullahi Ahmed.

Sudan, which accounts for more than half of the meningitis cases worldwide each year, has little or no infrastructure and is particularly at risk for outbreaks of disease.

(Reuters)