The meningitis epidemic that started in Burkina Faso at the end of February (2007)counts, as of today, some 10,796 reported cases and has killed 801 people, according to the MoH authorities.
© MSF
Meningococcal meningitis is a contagious and potentially fatal bacterial infection of the brain membrane. The bacteria are transmitted through respiratory droplets or throat secretions, with spread commonly occurring through close contact. Overcrowding and cramped living conditions facilitate the spread of the disease.
The vast majority of meningitis cases and deaths occur in Africa. During the dry season (December to June), epidemics regularly hit countries in the African ‘meningitis belt’, a region that stretches across the continent from Senegal to Ethiopia.
Without treatment, meningococcal meningitis can kill up to 80% of infected people. However, with early diagnosis and treatment with appropriate antibiotics, the death rate can be reduced to 5–10%. Up to one in five survivors will suffer from neurological damage, such as deafness or mental retardation.
Timely mass vaccinations are the best way of limiting the spread of meningitis epidemics.
In 2006, MSF treated 5,337 and vaccinated 1.8 million people against meningitis. During the 2006/2007 epidemic season in Africa, MSF was active in 14 outbreak responses in five countries that experienced meningitis epidemics (Burkina Faso, Chad, Sudan, Uganda and the Democratic Republic of Congo). In total, MSF was involved in the vaccination of 2.5 million people against meningitis and treated 10,500 patients affected by the disease.
In the field, MSF doctors are constantly frustrated by the lack of adequate medical tools. In response, Médecins Sans Frontières set up the MSF Access Campaign in 1999 to improve access to existing medical tools and to stimulate the development of urgently needed better tools. MSF Access Campaign.
MSF is well known for its humanitarian medical work, but it has also produced important research based on its field experience with vulnerable populations. This website archives MSF's scientific articles and makes them available free, with full text, and in an easily searchable format. MSF Field Research website.
For 40 years, MSF has directly witnessed the human cost of the lack of drugs for neglected diseases and has raised its voice against this inequity. In 2003, seven organisations from around the world joined forces to establish DNDi, Drugs for Neglected Diseases Initiative.