Boulton Jacqueline
Florence Nightingale School of Nursing and Midwifery, King's College, London, UK.
Br J Nurs. 2013;22(1):20-5. doi: 10.12968/bjon.2013.22.1.20.
Meningitis, defined as the inflammation of the lining surrounding the spine and the brain, can be caused by bacteria, viruses and fungi. Bacterial meningitis is the most serious form of the disease, causing around 170000 deaths worldwide each year. Most cases of bacterial meningitis are caused by three bacteria-Streptococcus pneumoniae, Neisseria meningitidis and Haemophilus influenzae type B. In the UK, vaccines are available to combat most of these, yet, according to the Meningitis Research Foundation, around 3400 cases of bacterial meningitis and septicaemia occur every year in the UK and the Republic of Ireland. This article reviews the history of vaccination against meningitis, explores the challenges facing nurses who are at the interface of immunisation policy and public expectations, outlines the current schedule and discusses advances in vaccine technology that offer the potential of a new immunisation against N meningitidis B, the leading cause of meningitis in the UK.
脑膜炎被定义为脊柱和脑周围脑膜的炎症，可由细菌、病毒和真菌引起。细菌性脑膜炎是该疾病最严重的形式，每年在全球导致约17万人死亡。大多数细菌性脑膜炎病例由三种细菌引起，即肺炎链球菌、脑膜炎奈瑟菌和B型流感嗜血杆菌。在英国，有疫苗可预防其中大多数病菌，但据脑膜炎研究基金会称，英国和爱尔兰共和国每年仍有大约3400例细菌性脑膜炎和败血症病例。本文回顾了脑膜炎疫苗接种的历史，探讨了处于免疫政策与公众期望交汇点的护士所面临的挑战，概述了当前的疫苗接种计划，并讨论了疫苗技术的进展，这些进展为针对在英国导致脑膜炎的主要病因——B群脑膜炎奈瑟菌的新型免疫接种提供了可能性。
