Antibiotics for preventing meningococcal infections

To What Extent Should We Rely on Antibiotics to Reduce High Gonococcal Prevalence? Historical Insights from Mass-Meningococcal Campaigns

In the absence of a vaccine, current antibiotic-dependent efforts to reduce the prevalence of Neisseria gonorrhoeae in high prevalence populations have been shown to result in extremely high levels of antibiotic consumption. No randomized controlled trials have been conducted to validate this strategy and an important concern of this approach is that it may induce antimicrobial resistance. To contribute to this debate, we assessed if mass treatment in the related species, Neisseria meningitidis, was associated with the emergence of antimicrobial resistance. To this end, we conducted a historical review of the effect of mass meningococcal treatment programmes on the prevalence of N. meningitidis and the emergence of antimicrobial resistance. We found evidence that mass treatment programmes were associated with the emergence of antimicrobial resistance.

Clinical and economic estimation of children’s pharmacotherapy with meningococcial infections in Ukraine

A comprehensive study for assessment the appointments rationality for children with meningococcal infectious (MI) in Ukraine in real clinical practice has been conducted. The doctor’s appointment sheets from 184 inpatients medical cards have been processed by the integral ABC / VEN / frequency analysis. In average, children were in the hospital (14±7) bed-days, they were granted 2908 appointments of 191 drugs by the INN. It has been established that medicine for MI etiotropic therapy took the third place in the appointments frequency. At the same time, the ABC / VEN-analysis results revealed a rational approach to pharmacotherapy.The total treatment cost was estimated at USD 25,173.59 (for one child – USD 136.81).Since currently in Ukraine inpatient children treatment is mainly provided by parents, further medical prescriptions improvement is needed in order to increase the efficiency and minimize the childrenMI therapy cost.