Meningococcal carriage in Dutch adolescents and young adults; a cross-sectional and longitudinal cohort study

Objectives Current information on rates and dynamics of meningococcal carriage is essential for public health policy. This study aimed to determine meningococcal carriage prevalence, its risk factors and duration in the Netherlands, where meningococcal C vaccine coverage is >90%. Several methods to identify serogroups of meningococcal carriage isolates among adolescent and young adults were compared. Methods Oropharyngeal swabs were collected from 1715 participants 13–23 years of age in 2013–2014; 300 were prospectively followed over 8 months. Cultured isolates were characterized by Ouchter... Mehr ...