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August 5, 2002
INTERNATIONAL IMMUNIZATION NEWS
"Meningitis Jabs for Thousands at Risk"
Press Association (UK) ( www.pressassociation.press.net )
(08/02/02); Wheldon, Julie
Following a warning about the potential risk of bacterial
meningitis in people who have cochlear implants, the British
Department of Health said Friday that anyone with the implants
would be offered a vaccine to protect them against the disease.
Children under the age of two years will get the pneumococcal
vaccine Prevnar, while those over two will receive the 23-valent
pneumococcal polysaccharide vaccine. Deputy chief medical
officer Dr. Pat Troop, noting that the implants have been very
successful in restoring hearing in profoundly deaf individuals,
said that the risk of infection is quite low. Of 3,300 people
with cochlear implants in the United Kingdom, there has been only
one suspected case of meningitis.
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