Overview
- UKHSA, which confirmed the cluster on Friday, said three young people in Weymouth have MenB, all are recovering, and close contacts have received antibiotics.
- Health teams are staging a rollout of single-dose antibiotics and the MenB jab to eligible pupils across Weymouth, Portland and Chickerell, starting with Budmouth Academy and Wey Valley Academy.
- The two Budmouth cases are known contacts of each other, while investigators have not found a confirmed link to the case at Wey Valley Academy.
- Laboratory testing shows the three infections share the same MenB sub-strain, which differs from the recent Kent outbreak, and officials warn more linked cases are possible even as schools stay open for those who are well.
- Many teenagers lack routine MenB protection because the infant MenB program began in 2015, and the MenACWY vaccine does not cover MenB, so families are urged to watch for fever, headache, vomiting and a rash that does not fade under a glass.