Get your meningitis (meningococcal) vaccine today

Viral meningitis (when meningitis is caused by a virus) is the most common type of meningitis, but meningitis can also be caused by certain bacteria, which is the type that vaccines help prevent. Close contacts of someone with viral meningitis can become infected with the virus that made that person sick. However, these close contacts are not likely to develop meningitis. Only a small number of people who get infected with the viruses that can cause meningitis will develop viral meningitis. Those infected with meningococcal bacteria can spread their bacterial infection to others by sharing saliva (spit). https://www.cdc.gov/meningococcal/about/causes-transmission.html

There are three types of meningococcal vaccines used in the United States:

• Meningococcal conjugate or MenACWY vaccines
• Serogroup B meningococcal or MenB vaccines
• Pentavalent or MenABCWY vaccine

The Centers for Disease Control and Prevention recommends a single dose of the MenACWY vaccination at age 11 or 12, with a booster shot at 16. If the first dose is instead received in early teens (ages 13 through 15), the booster is given between ages 16 and 18. Teens who receive their first MenACWY vaccine dose at or after age 16 years do not need a booster dose.

The CDC recommends that certain adolescents and adults should receive a serogroup B meningococcal vaccine. If a MenACWY and MenB vaccine are to be given at the same visit, a MenABCWY vaccine may be given instead.

To learn more about the vaccines that are right for you, talk to your pharmacist, health care provider or visit the CDC website at https://www.cdc.gov/meningitis/index.html.

According to the Centers for Disease Control and Prevention, the three meningitis (meningococcal) vaccines listed above work well, but aren’t able to prevent all cases of meningitis. When undergoing their testing for licensure, MenACWY, MenB and MenABCWY vaccines produced an immune response that suggests the vaccines do provide protection, but there are limited data about how much protection they provide. This is in part due to the uncommon nature of meningococcal disease, as more people would need to get these vaccines to more accurately measure their effectiveness. You can learn more about the effectiveness of these vaccines at https://www.cdc.gov/vaccines/vpd/mening/public/index.html

If you have ever had a serious allergic reaction after a previous dose of MenACWY, MenB or MenABCWY vaccine, the Centers for Disease Control and Prevention (CDC) recommends that you do not get subsequent doses of that type of vaccine. Similarly, if you know that you have a severe allergy to any ingredients found within any of these vaccines, you should not get a meningococcal vaccine. If you currently have a moderate or severe illness, the CDC also recommends that you first recover before getting a meningitis vaccine.

For more information on additional warnings and precautions, visit: https://www.CDC.gov/Vaccines/VPD/Mening/Public/Index.html

For more information on meningitis vaccination recommendations, visit:
https://www.cdc.gov/meningitis/index.html
https://www.cdc.gov/vaccines/vpd/mening/index.html
https://www.cdc.gov/vaccines/vpd/mening/public/index.html

There is always the possibility, as with any medicine, for side effects. After receiving the meningitis vaccine, people typically do not suffer any serious problems. Side effects, should they occur, are usually mild and disappear on their own after a few days. Although uncommon, serious reactions are possible. To learn about possible side effects, visit https://www.cdc.gov/vaccines/vpd/mening/public/index.html#side-effects

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