Concerns have been raised in Britain about side effects of the new Meningitis C vaccine, which has been available there for the past eight months. The Department of Health plans to introduce the vaccine here within the next few months. However, the Irish Medicines Board intends to liase with the relevant authorities in Britain before it decides to license the new vaccine.
There are about 450 cases of Meningitis in Ireland every year, the highest rate of the disease in Europe. The C strain accounts for about 40% of cases and the B strain 60%. Although there is no vaccine available for the B strain, a vaccine against the C strain has been available in other countries for some time and a major vaccination programme began in Britain last November. So far, thirteen million children have had the jab and results released today show that almost 5,000 have suffered some sort of adverse reaction. The Medicines Control Agency has said that most are minor, such as colds and headaches, but some are more serious such as fevers and blackouts.
The health authorities point out that since the introduction of the programme, the number of cases of Meningitis C has dropped by 75%. Support groups are urging parents to continue to get their children vaccinated. A similar vaccination programme was due to begin here this summer. The Department of Health has been waiting for the vaccine to be licensed by the Irish Medicines Board. Today, the Board said that it would ensure that all new safety data was fully evaluated before any decision would be taken to licence the vaccine for the Irish market.
