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Babies should be vaccinated against meningococcal B at 2,4 and 12 months of age

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Karl Tapales/Getty Images

The Standing Vaccination Commission (Stiko) now recommends vaccination against meningococcal B (MenB) for infants from the age of two months.

"Overall, invasive MenB diseases occur very rarely, but the course of the disease is very serious," the committee said on Thursday.

The risk of the disease is highest in the first year of life.

That’s why early vaccination is important.

Infants should receive three doses of the vaccine at two, four and twelve months of age.

For small children, the recommendation published by the Robert Koch Institute (RKI) calls for a catch-up vaccination up to their fifth birthday.

Stiko also advises children under two years of age to be given paracetamol at the same time or shortly after the vaccination as a precaution to prevent fever or pain that may occur as a result of the injection.

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Meningococci are bacteria and are transmitted to other people through droplets, such as when coughing or sneezing.

A distinction is made between so-called serogroups.

According to the RKI, most diseases in Germany are caused by serotypes B, C, W and Y.

For serogroup C, Stiko has been recommending vaccination for children from the age of two since 2006.

A vaccination recommendation against type B has so far only applied to certain risk groups, people at risk at work and people who travel to a highly endemic area.

According to the RKI, a meningococcal infection often results in headaches, fever, chills and dizziness with a “severe feeling of illness”.

Regarding infants and children it says: "Fever, vomiting, irritability or even drowsiness, cramps, crying out and a bulging or hard fontanelle may occur."

Overall, invasive meningococcal B diseases have declined significantly in Germany over the past two decades.

According to the RKI, around 3.5 out of 100,000 infants fell ill each year in the five years before the corona pandemic.

According to experts, the general mortality rate from MenB disease in Germany is around 8 percent.

From 2015 to 2019, a total of 59 deaths were reported in Germany, most of them in infants and small children.

wbr/dpa