The older adolescent case occurred several weeks ago but was recently identified.
Meningococcal disease is caused by the bacteria Neisseria meningitidis, which is carried in the throat of people who may have no symptoms, and rarely causes an infection in the blood or at other body sites, including meningitis.
See the new Interior Health Public Service Announcement.
Antibiotics have been offered to people who were in close contact with cases. This is done to clear an infection from the throat and prevent transmission within a tightly knit group such as a household.
All students and staff of the school were offered meningococcal conjugate vaccine starting on November 10th to provide longer term protection than that afforded by antibiotics. The vaccine covers four types (serogroups) of the bacteria, including W, identified in all three cases.
Because of the identification of this infection in an adolescent beyond high school age, Interior Health is expanding the offering of vaccine to young adults up to 24 years of age in Oliver, as well as those in this age group who have contact with the Oliver school community but who live in Osoyoos and Okanagan Falls. Clinics will be set up in Oliver and start on Saturday November 18th.
BC has not had an outbreak of meningococcal disease since 2001 in Abbotsford. That outbreak was due to serogroup C, and resulted in seven cases including two deaths among those aged 15-29 years. Since 2008 and because of the childhood vaccination program, only a single case of serogroup C has been reported in BC in a person under 25 years old.
- In 2016, nine cases of meningococcal disease were reported in BC, with no fatal outcomes. Five cases were due to serotype Y, two were due to serotype W, and two were due to serotype B. Three of the cases were younger than 20 years old, with one each due to serogroup B, W and Y.
- In 2017, as of November 17th, 23 laboratory confirmed cases of invasive meningococcal disease (IMD) have been reported to the BCCDC for an annual incidence rate of 0.48 cases per 100,000 population. Fourteen cases were serogroup W, five serogroup Y, three serogroup B and one serogroup C. The 14 serogroup W cases ranged in age from 0 to 97 years, with a median age of 32 years. Seven of these cases were over 40 years of age, and six were aged 15-24 years. The 14 serogroup W cases have occurred in four health authorities: eight in Interior Health, four in Fraser Health and one each in Vancouver Coastal Health and Island Health.
