In the video: Dr. Ronan Hadi Cohen, an expert in pediatrics and pediatric neurology and child development, explains about meningococcal B/Editor: Ziv Steiner
Meningococcus B is a fairly common bacterium, found in the throat of about 15-25% of children (1 in every 4-5 children).
It is mostly harmless, but in some cases it can cause serious and even fatal illness within 24 hours.
Toddlers up to the age of two are at the highest risk of getting sick, with their risk being ten times higher than the general population.
The bacterium is transmitted from person to person by droplet infection, with the symptoms usually similar to childhood illnesses, and they include fever, restlessness and sleepiness.
The disease progresses rapidly from the moment it appears and without antibiotic treatment, 50 percent of children who contract the infection will not survive.
A vaccine for the bacterium is available to the public in Israel and is approved by the FDA, the European Health Association and the Ministry of Health in Israel.
It is recommended by the Ministry of Health and the Association of Pediatricians and according to the results of the studies, it is also effective, safe and provides approximately 90% protection against the disease.
According to studies, the vaccine is effective, safe and provides approximately 90% protection against the disease/ShutterStock
What else is important to know about the bacteria and how much the vaccine can help?
Meningococcal B bacteria is common in the nose and pharynx, in adolescent children and adults.
He likes crowded places, like the city of Bnei Brak for example, where there is the highest chance of contracting the bacteria.
How do you recognize the development of the disease?
It begins like a normal illness, but within a few hours a disturbing and even frightening phenomenon begins;
The fever soars and sometimes there is a change in the child's consciousness and he becomes restless.
In addition, there are severe headaches and vomiting and it also starts as a bloody rash on the skin.
As soon as the bacteria spreads, the child is on borrowed time and needs to get treatment immediately.
What else can be said about the vaccine?
In Quebec, Canada, they made extensive use of the vaccine and infection rates dropped to very low values.
This led to the fact that many countries understood the meaning and importance of the vaccine, which entered the children's routine protocol.
Even here in Israel, everyone recommends that it be included, and every year we hope that it will be included.
I'm keeping my fingers crossed that this year it will happen.
The author is Dr. Ronan Hadi Cohen, an expert in pediatrics and pediatric neurology and child development
In cooperation with GSK without involvement in the contents
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