Group A Meningogoccal Outbreak in Peshawar

Abstract

During a group A meningococcal outbreak in Peshawar. 454 hospitalized patients were studied from 26^th December, 1987 to 1^st May, 1988. The study was conducted at LRH, PGMI, Peshawar. The incidence of the disease increased in the last week of December, during a dry and cold weather. It rained at intervals and throughout the period of the epidemic, suggesting no influence of rains on the incidence of meaningococcal disease. The disease typically started with fever, accompanied by chills, leading to a wrong diagnosis of malaria by the local unqualified "practitioners". More males were affected than females. Acute fulminant meningococcemia was much more common in the males. The overall morality was 8.4%, with a higher mortality in males.