Meningitis fight 'not over'

Mass vaccination began just over a year ago

A leading Scottish health charity is calling on the government to boost funding for research into the potentially fatal brain disease meningitis.

The plea by the Meningitis Association of Scotland came as the UK Government announced that the C strain of the disease had been all but wiped out.

Health chiefs say the success story is down to a new vaccine which has dramatically cut the numbers contracting meningitis.

Campaigners north of the Border welcomed the advance, which was made public on Wednesday.

Eileen McKeirnan: "More needs to be done"

But they now insist more effort must be centred on finding a vaccine for meningitis B.

More than half the 327 cases of the potential killer in Scotland last year were of the B strain.

Eileen McKeirnan, whose son Lee died of the disease just before his 18th birthday, is the chairwoman of the Meningitis Association of Scotland.

She wants more to be done to find a vaccine for the B strain.

"Scientists are working on it, but there is a lack of funding," she said.

"They need the funding - they do have the brains, but we need to keep these scientists working to find the answers not only to the B strain but other strains out there."

'Great frustration'

Professor Hugh Pennington of Aberdeen University said traditional childhood diseases like diphtheria and polio had been "seen off".

But he added: "We seem to be left with this particular nasty bug. That is a great frustration to scientists, doctors and the public in particular."

Lee McKeirnan died before his 18th birthday

Meningitis C accounts for 40% of cases of the disease. It was contracted by 1,530 people in 1998, resulting in 150 deaths.

Figures show that in the last six months there was a 90% drop in cases among babies under one year old and in the 15-17 year old age group.

These two groups were the first to be immunised.

Across all age groups the number of meningitis C cases has fallen by 75%.

Just six babies under a year old contracted the disease in 2000, compared with 32 in 1999 - a reduction of 82%.

'Created a miracle'

It is estimated that 500 cases of Group C meningococcal meningitis and septicaemia have been prevented since the start of the programme, and 50 deaths have been avoided.

A mass immunisation programme has taken place

Dr George Kassianos, immunisation spokesman of the Royal College of General Practitioners, said: "We have created a miracle here.

"To achieve these results in only a year will be the envy of the world.

"No other country could have achieved it. The department had the vision to act and was the first in the world to do so."

A policy of mass vaccination began in November 1999. It focussed initially on babies and older teenagers as the were the greatest danger group, and was then extended to all under-18s.

Since then 18 million vaccines have been given to people of all ages.