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CDC Wants Teens Vaccinated Against Bacterial Meningitis
Washington PostA11
06/28/2007
A Centers for Disease Control and Prevention (CDC) advisory panel said Wednesday that all 11-to-18-year-olds should be vaccinated against bacterial meningitis. Sanofi Pasteur's Menactra, a meningococcal conjugate vaccine, is currently recommended for 11- and 12-year-olds. Despite a shortage last year, the CDC says plenty of the vaccine can now be produced. Though rare, bacterial meningitis is a serious and even fatal disease causing the membranes around the brain and spinal cord to swell, resulting in seizures, brain damage, and memory loss.
