Trends in meningococcal disease in Italy 1987.

Meningococcal disease in Italy decreased 29% in 1987 from the previous year. The highest number of cases was seen in the 1-4 year-old age group (27%). The frequency in army recruits was 5/100,000, still higher than the 0.57/100,000 in the general population, but less than the 7/100,000 reported in the previous year. Sixty-three percent of the isolates belonged to serogroup C while serogroup B constituted 25%. The proportion of strains resistant to sulphonamides was 52.6%. Six strains were resistant to rifampin and none to minocyclin. No secondary cases occurred. These results are consistent with the trends reported in Italy in 1986. There were two findings of interest in 1987: the absence of secondary cases, attributable to the appropriate administration of chemoprophylaxis; and the decrease in military cases, reflecting the use of bivalent serogroup (A + C) meningococcal polysaccharide vaccine in all new military recruits since January 1987.