Overview

• National coverage for meningococcal vaccines remains below protective levels, with about 60% adherence at age 11 and less than 80% in infants against a 95% target.
• Instituto Malbrán reports that serogroup B accounted for 95% of confirmed meningococcal cases in children under one year in 2024.
• Adolescents are often asymptomatic carriers and key transmitters, making both infancy and early adolescence priority groups for immunization.
• Bacterial meningitis progresses quickly and is severe, with WHO estimating roughly one in six deaths and one in five survivors left with permanent disabilities.
• Clinicians urge immediate medical evaluation for sudden high fever, severe headache, neck stiffness, vomiting, or somnolence, noting that meningococcal sepsis can present with purple skin spots (petechiae) and rapid deterioration.