Meningococcal disease is primarily a disease of very small children, although children and young adults are increasingly affected. It is more likely to occur in situations where crowded living conditions exist. Their data demonstrated that while the overall rate of disease in college students is lower than same-aged persons not in college, freshmen that lived in dormitories had the highest rate of any age group in the population other than children less than 2 years. Last year there were 3 cases of meningococcal disease in Allen County and there were 76 cases in the entire state. There are 2,400 -3,000 cases in the United States each year.
Diagnosis is made by the recovery of meningococci from CSF or blood.
In culture negative cases, diagnosis may be supported by the identification of group specific meningococcal polysaccharides. Organisms can also be obtained and identified from petechial Gram stains. Meningococcal bacteria are susceptible to a number of antibiotics. Given the high mortality associated with delay in treatment, antimicrobial treatment should be started immediately. Presumptive treatment should include coverage for Haemophilus and Strept pneumonia as well as Neisseria .