Institute of Medical Microbiology, Semmelweis University, Budapest, Hungary.
Institute of Laboratory Medicine, Semmelweis University, Budapest, Hungary.
Vaccine. 2024 Apr 2;42(9):2271-2277. doi: 10.1016/j.vaccine.2024.02.064. Epub 2024 Feb 29.
Neisseria meningitidis causes life-threatening invasive meningococcal disease (IMD) with high mortality worldwide. Asymptomatic pharyngeal meningococcus colonisation is an important reservoir for the spread of the bacterium. The aim of this study was to determine N. meningitidis colonisation rates in asymptomatic high school and university students and to identify risk factors for carriage. Oropharyngeal swab samples and data from a self-reported questionnaire were obtained from overall 610 students, among them 303 university students and 307 high school students, aged between 15 and 31 years in Budapest, Hungary, between November 2017 and December 2018. Meningococcal carriage and serogroup of N. meningitidis were determined by RT-PCR from DNA extracted directly from the specimen. N. meningitidis was identified in 212 (34.8 %) of the participants. Significantly higher carriage rate was found among high school students (48.9 %) compared to university students (20.5 %). Peak of colonisation rate was among 17-19-year-old students (48.7 %). Most carriage isolates were non-typable (87.3 %). From the 212 meningococcus carriers, 19 were colonised by serogroup B (9 %), 5 by serogroup C (2.4 %), and 1 had serogroup Y (0.5 %). Significantly higher colonisation rate was found among males (42.4 %) than in females (33.1 %). Antibiotic use in the past 2 months has decreased the rate of meningococcal colonisation. Recent respiratory infection, active or passive smoking and attending parties have not influenced meningococcal colonisation rate significantly. In conclusion, we have found high asymptomatic meningococcus carriage rate among high school students and young adults, however, the majority of the colonizing meningococci were non-typable.
脑膜炎奈瑟菌可引起危及生命的侵袭性脑膜炎球菌病（ IMD ），在全球范围内死亡率很高。无症状咽脑膜炎球菌定植是细菌传播的重要储库。本研究旨在确定无症状高中生和大学生中脑膜炎奈瑟菌定植率，并确定定植的危险因素。在 2017 年 11 月至 2018 年 12 月期间，在匈牙利布达佩斯，从 610 名年龄在 15 至 31 岁的学生中获得了咽拭子样本和一份自我报告问卷的数据。从直接从标本中提取的 DNA 中，通过 RT-PCR 确定脑膜炎奈瑟菌的携带情况和血清型。在 212 名参与者（34.8%）中发现了脑膜炎奈瑟菌。与大学生（20.5%）相比，高中生的携带率明显更高（48.9%）。定植率峰值出现在 17-19 岁的学生中（48.7%）。大多数定植分离株不可分型（87.3%）。在 212 名脑膜炎球菌携带者中，19 株为 B 群（9%），5 株为 C 群（2.4%），1 株为 Y 群（0.5%）。男性（42.4%）的携带率明显高于女性（33.1%）。在过去 2 个月中使用抗生素会降低脑膜炎奈瑟菌的定植率。最近的呼吸道感染、主动或被动吸烟以及参加派对对脑膜炎奈瑟菌的定植率没有明显影响。总之，我们发现高中生和年轻人中有很高的无症状脑膜炎球菌携带率，但大多数定植的脑膜炎球菌是不可分型的。
