Bacterial Meningitis Prevention for College Students

Bacterial meningitis can cause hearing damage, brain damage, amputations or death. Meningitis, however, can also cause a mild disease that may go by unnoticed and resolve itself without treatment. Infants, adolescents and young adults are in the most vulnerable age groups for getting meningitis.

College students are at risk for getting meningitis not only because they are young adults, susceptible to getting meningitis anyway, but because they are also exposed to other risk factors. Crowded living conditions in the typical college dorm, eating with many people, and sharing eating utensils or drinking glasses increase the risk of getting meningitis. Smoking and being around second-hand smoke are additional risk factors for bacterial meningitis. Finally, the stress caused by a new life without parents in an unfamiliar environment, combined with the pressures of studying, may affect the immune system's ability to battle the bacteria that can cause meningitis.

Much is still unknown about meningitis, but the bacteria most likely to cause meningitis have been identified. The causes of meningitis change somewhat according to the age and health condition of the individual. Below are the bacteria known to cause meningitis in college age students:

• Meningococcal meningitis
• Haemophilus influenza type B (Hib)
• Pneumonococcus
• Tuberculosis (meningitis caused by tuberculosis is very rare)

How Can I Prevent Getting These Bugs?

• Find out if you should get one or more of the vaccines to protect against meningitis.
• If someone you are close to gets meningitis, see your doctor to discuss what you can do to prevent the disease. He or she may recommend treatment with antibiotics to prevent getting the disease yourself.
• Know the symptoms of meningitis and go to the emergency room immediately if meningitis is suspected.
• Wash hands properly after going to the toilet and before eating.
• Quit smoking and encourage those around you to quit, too. Smoking and being exposed to second-hand smoke increases the risk of getting meningitis.
• Seek medical help for underlying diseases, colds, and flu.
• If you have a weakened immune system because of HIV/AIDS, cancer, a damaged or missing spleen or any other reason, also read about how to prevent meningitis in those with weakened immune systems.

Back to Bacterial Meningitis 101

More Information About Meningitis:

• Symptoms of Meningitis
• Meningitis Vaccines

Sources

Centers for Disease Control and Prevention. Traveler's Health. Yellow Book. Meningococcal disease. Retrieved August 14, 2007.

Centers for Disease Control and Prevention. Division of Mycotic and Bacterial Diseases. Meningococcal Disease. Retrieved September 1, 2007.

Centers for Disease Control and Prevention. MMWR (August 10, 2007). Notice to Readers: Revised Recommendations of the Advisory Committee on Immunization Practices to Vaccinate All Persons Aged 11--18 Years with Meningococcal Conjugate Vaccine.

Centers for Disease Control. Hamophilus Influenza type B (Hib) Vaccine; What You Need to Know. Retrieved September 1, 2007.

Centers for Disease Control. Frequently Asked Questions about the Pnuemonococcal Conjugate Vaccine for Parents. Retrieved September 4, 2007.

Centers for Disease Control. Pnuemonococcal Disease-In Short. Retrieved September 4, 2007.

Centers for Disease Control. Vaccines and Immunizations. Pnuemonococcal Disease in Children: Q and A. Retrieved September 20, 2007.

Heymann, David (2004.) Control of communicable diseases manual. Washington D.C.: American Public Health Association.

Bernal, Oscar. Personal communication. August 15, 2007.