Inside Health What's driving the outbreak of meningitis among students?
Mar 24, 2026
Dr Antoine Abu-Fayyad, Beirut-based microbiologist studying how conflict fuels multidrug-resistant infections. Sir Andrew Pollard, immunologist and vaccine expert who has worked on meningitis vaccines and care for children. They discuss a large meningococcal outbreak among students and why strain typing and vaccination matter. They also explore how war accelerates superbugs and the global risks that follow.
AI Snips
Chapters
Transcript
Episode notes
University Social Mixing Raises Meningitis Risk
- University-age social mixing raises carriage and outbreak risk for meningococcal bacteria.
- Andrew Pollard explains carriage is ~10% overall but much higher in late teens/early 20s and linked to events and shared living.
Strain Typing Determines Vaccine Response
- Identifying the bacterial strain guides both vaccine strategy and whether cases are related.
- Pollard notes strain typing decides if existing vaccines cover the outbreak and confirms links between cases tied to single events.
Vaccine Coverage Varies By Strain And Age
- Current UK vaccines cover A, C, W, Y for teenagers and some B strains for babies only.
- Pollard explains the B group is diverse with hundreds of strains and the B vaccine was introduced in 2015 for infants, not university-age people.