Case series of meningococcal sepsis; are we seeing the real picture

Invasive meningococcal sepsis caused by Neisseria meningitidis is of global health concern with high morbidity and mortality. N. meningitidis can cause sporadic cases, focal outbreaks (institutional based) and large epidemics. Here we report eleven cases of invasive meningococcal sepsis in Sri Lanka during a period of eight months which is a significant occurrence. In our case series, age of presentation ranged from 1.5 to 67 years. There were 7 (63.6%) males. Four patients were associated with inmates of two prisons. The majority of patients were from urban, crowded areas in Colombo and the adult working population. All were promptly treated with antibiotics on suspicion and aetiology confirmed by blood cultures. Contact tracing, notification and prescription of chemoprophylaxis to contacts of these sporadic cases were carried out. Four (36.3%) patients died, and the others recovered without any complication. It is important to maintain a strong surveillance programme to identify epidemics early and to initiate timely preventive measures in the population