[Acute bacterial meningitis: the role of molecular biology in the epidemiological surveillance and epidemic alert in Burkina Faso].

: In Burkina Faso, monitoring of acute meningitis epidemics is difficult to be implemented by routine bacteriology. The Polymerase Chain Reaction (PCR) that freed us from some constraints should allow better documentation of acute bacterial meningitis epidemics [7]. It was about a transverse study with descriptive aim along one year. The recruitment of cases was exhaustive and sample was representative of population at risk. Among the suspected ABM, 87 cases were confirmed by all biological diagnosis methods. Among these 87 confirmed cases, 82.7% were PCR positive. The culture was performed in 82 cases and 54.5% were positive. A statistical difference was observed. The sex ratio was 1.4:1, the average age of patients was 11± 4, 6 years [0-59], 26.4% of cases were observed on less than one year. Meningococcal meningitis ranked first with a rate of 46%. The peak incidence was observed during week 13-2003 or 15, 3%. The weeks pre and per epidemic (week11-week 13) PCR had the highest rate of confirmation for Neisseria meningitidis 78, 8%. The W135 was the most represented or 91%. PCR is thus an excellent alert tool for acute meningitis epidemics.