MENINGOCOCCAL DISEASE OUTBREAK IN A LIBERIAN COUNTY

Abstract

Meningococcal infection caused by Neisseria meningitidis causes epidemics especially in the ‘’Meningitis Belt’’ of Sub-Saharan Africa with a case fatality of 5.9% and attack rate 1%. We report a localized outbreak of Meningococcal disease in a Liberian county (a West African country) where our Pakistan Army Military Hospital was working under United Nations (UN) Mission. It began suddenly as a cluster of cases who had all attended a funeral. Patients developed sudden headache, vomiting and abdominal pain with petechial rash in a few but without fever in the majority. It caused much diagnostic confusion until the illness was diagnosed by Centres for disease control (CDC) as Meningococcal septicemia due to Neisseria meningitidis group C.