An unusual transmission event of Neisseria meningitidis serogroup W135 type 2a in a healthcare setting, England, 2012

R Puleston; C Beck; M Tahir; M Bardhan; P Charlemagne; C Alves; S Ladhani; C Watson; M Ramsay; E Kaczmarksi; R Borrow; S Gray; D Hadlington; M Weinbren; D Bhattacharjee; N Inglis

doi:10.2807/ese.17.44.20308-en

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An unusual transmission event of Neisseria meningitidis serogroup W135 type 2a in a healthcare setting, England, 2012
R Puleston¹ , C Beck¹ , M Tahir² , M Bardhan² , P Charlemagne² , C Alves² , S Ladhani³ , C Watson³ , M Ramsay³ , E Kaczmarksi⁴ , R Borrow⁴ , S Gray⁴ , D Hadlington⁵ , M Weinbren⁶ , D Bhattacharjee⁶ , N Inglis⁷
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Affiliations: ¹ Health Protection Agency, Nottingham, United Kingdom ² Health Protection Agency, Birmingham, United Kingdom ³ Health Protection Agency, London, United Kingdom ⁴ Meningococcal Reference Unit, Health Protection Agency, Public Health Laboratory, Manchester, United Kingdom ⁵ West Midlands Ambulance Service, West Midlands, United Kingdom ⁶ University Hospitals Coventry and Warwickshire NHS Trust, Coventry, United Kingdom ⁷ NHS Coventry and Warwickshire, Coventry, United Kingdom

Correspondence:
R Puleston
richard.puleston hpa.org.uk
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Citation style for this article: Puleston R, Beck C, Tahir M, Bardhan M, Charlemagne P, Alves C, Ladhani S, Watson C, Ramsay M, Kaczmarksi E, Borrow R, Gray S, Hadlington D, Weinbren M, Bhattacharjee D, Inglis N. An unusual transmission event of Neisseria meningitidis serogroup W135 type 2a in a healthcare setting, England, 2012. Euro Surveill. 2012;17(44):pii=20308. https://doi.org/10.2807/ese.17.44.20308-en Received: 08 Oct 2012

Abstract

We report an outbreak of Neisseria meningitidis serogroup W135, associated with a transient transmission event between asymptomatic individuals in a healthcare setting. Two elderly persons subsequently developed invasive meningococcal disease. The duration and type of close contact for those directly involved in the probable transmission incident would not have warranted chemoprophylaxis according to current guidelines. Meningococcal infection in older persons usually presents with pneumonia rather than meningitis or septicaemia with purpura.