Emphasis on prompt diagnosis in new meningitis guidelines

28 June 2010

RECOGNITION of the signs and symptoms of bacterial meningitis and meningococcal septicaemia is key in preventing death in children and young people contracting the diseases, says new clinical guidelines released by NICE.

The management of bacterial meningitis and meningococcal septicaemia in children and young people younger than 16 years in primary and secondary care has been developed along with the National Collaborating Centre for Women’s and Children’s Health and aims to help to save lives by providing the knowledge and confidence to recognise symptoms and signs of meningoccal disease and to seek appropriate clinical or specialist care.

England and Wales sees over 1700 cases of meningococcal disease each year with a fatality rate of about 10%. It is the leading infectious cause of death in early childhood making its control and treatment a clinical priority. The incidence of meningococcal disease and bacterial meningitis has fallen over the last 20 years, primarily as a result of the introduction of the meningitis C vaccine.

The guideline covers symptoms and signs of bacterial meningitis and meningococcal septicaemia and management in the pre-hospital setting, diagnosis and management in secondary care and long-term management of lasting morbidity.

Professor Andrew Pollard, a specialist in paediatric infectious diseases and Chair of the Guideline Development Group, said: "The guideline does not direct major changes in clinical practice but builds on and clarifies practice guidelines which have been widely used since the late 1990s. The guideline provides the evidence base for the recommendations and should provide firm and authoritative guidance for junior doctors faced with management of these seriously ill children for the first time."