Public health management of invasive meningococcal disease outbreaks: worldwide 1973-2018, a systematic review.

backgroundInfectious disease outbreaks are an ongoing public health concern, requiring extensive resources to prevent and manage. Invasive Meningococcal Disease (IMD) is a severe outcome of infection with Neisseria meningitidis bacteria, which can be carried and transmitted asymptomatically. IMD is not completely vaccine-preventable, presenting an ongoing risk of outbreak development. This review provides a retrospective assessment of public health management of IMD outbreaks.

methodsA systematic search was performed in PubMed and EMBASE. English-language studies reporting on IMD outbreaks and associated public health response were considered eligible. Reporting on key characteristics including outbreak size, duration, location, and public health response were assessed against Strengthening the Reporting of Observational studies in Epidemiology guidelines. A summary of lessons learned and author recommendations for each article were also discussed.

results39 eligible studies were identified, describing 35 outbreaks in seven regions. Responses to outbreaks were mostly reactive, involving whole communities over prioritising those at highest risk of transmission. Recent responses identified a need for more proactive and targeted controls. Reporting was inconsistent, with key characteristics such as outbreak size, duration, or response absent or incompletely described.

conclusionThere is a need for clear, comprehensive reporting on IMD outbreaks and their public health response to inform policy and practice for subsequent outbreaks of IMD and other infectious diseases.