The Department of Health plans to introduce a new vaccine against meningitis C into the State's immunisation programme.
A spokesman confirmed yesterday that the vaccine, expected to be implemented in the British health system from October, will be phased in to the primary childhood immunisation programme "as soon as it becomes available here". Its introduction depends on full approval by the British and European medicine authorities.
There were 447 cases of meningococcal infection in the State last year, with the C strain accounting for about 40 per cent of cases. Meningitis killed 21 people last year and the incidence of meningitis and septicaemia (the blood poisoning form of the disease) in the State has more than doubled in the last five years.
The vaccine has been welcomed by workers in public health and infectious diseases. Ms Janna Moore, information officer with the Meningitis Research Foundation in Dublin hoped "it will lead to a significant decrease in group C cases". The existing meningitis C vaccine only gives immunity for three years and is only administered to close contacts of those with the disease. Groups at highest risk from meningitis and septicaemia are children under five and 15 to 19-year-olds.
Research is continuing for a vaccine against the B strain which accounts for 60 per cent of cases here.
The director of the recently established National Disease Surveillance Centre, Dr Darina O'Flanagan, described the new vaccine as "an exciting prospect that will play a part in decreasing one type of meningitis in this country.
"It is a very severe illness that can affect people in a matter of a few hours. Our main priority is to ensure that parents are aware of the signs and symptoms," she said. Symptoms of meningococcal disease are rashes, aches and pains, cold hands and feet, rapid breathing, vomiting, fever, headaches and dislike of bright lights.
A spokesman for Wyeth Laboratories, the British company which plans to manufacture the vaccine, said it had applied to the Medicines Control Agency in Britain and was waiting for product approval.
Wyeth has plants in Dublin and Limerick and it may apply to the EU for "mutual recognition", which would mean automatic acceptance of the vaccine in other member-states. The vaccine has been tested on 18,000 children around the world, the spokesman said.
Dr Declan McKeown, a specialist in public health medicine for the Western Health Board, said he has had feedback from paediatricians, doctors and GPs on the vaccine. "The feeling is that this is going to be a tremendous advance in combating a disease that frightens everybody," he said.