MMWR – Morbidity and Mortality Weekly Report

1. CDC Grand Rounds: The Million Hearts Initiative

CDC
Division of News & Electronic Media
404-639-3286

Million Heartsâ„¢ is a national public-private initiative that aims to prevent 1 million heart attacks and strokes by 2017. Success will be realized through improvements in community and clinical prevention. System and environmental changes at the local and state levels will be important to facilitate healthy choices as the easy choices for all and ensure full use of effective clinical interventions by health care professionals and the systems in which they work. Considerable commitments and dedication from public and private partners and the American public will make the difference in reaching the Million Heartsâ„¢ goal

2. Serogroup A Meningococcal Conjugate Vaccine Coverage After the First National Mass Immunization Campaign — Burkina Faso, 2011

CDC
Division of News & Electronic Media
404-639-3286

High coverage of PsA-TT (MenAfriVac), as documented in Burkina Faso through this coverage survey, will be necessary throughout the Meningitis Belt in order to achieve elimination of epidemic meningitis in this region. Meningococcal meningitis is a devastating public health problem in the meningitis belt of Sub-Saharan Africa. PsA-TT is a new serogroup A meningococcal conjugate vaccine introduced in 10 of 26 target countries thus far.  This study documents PsA-TT coverage after a mass immunization campaign in Burkina Faso, the first country to introduce PsA-TT nationally. Results of this survey demonstrate high coverage ( greater than 90 percent) in all regions, age groups, and sexes.  Maintenance of high levels of population immunity in Burkina Faso, and continued successful introduction of PsA-TT in other countries, will be important in the effort to eliminate epidemic serogroup A meningococcal meningitis in sub-Saharan Africa. Rigorous coverage surveys will continue to be critical for monitoring introduction of this new vaccine. 

3. Evaluation of Meningitis Surveillance Before Introduction of Serogroup A Meningococcal Conjugate Vaccine — Burkina Faso and Mali, 2007–2010

CDC
Division of News & Electronic Media
404-639-3286

In countries introducing the new vaccine against epidemic meningitis, MenAfriVac, strong disease surveillance is essential for evaluating vaccine impact. In the “meningitis belt” of Africa, a region stretching from Senegal in the West to Ethiopia in the East, about 450 million people each year are at risk of devastating meningitis outbreaks. Bacterial meningitis kills about 10 percent of patients and about 25 percent suffer long term effects such as deafness, brain damage or loss of limbs.  In 2009, a new vaccine was licensed (PsA-TT, MenAfriVac), which holds promise for eliminating epidemic meningitis in the region. The vaccine was introduced in countries through mass immunization campaigns at an unprecedented public health scale. A joint CDC and WHO team carried out evaluations of the meningitis disease surveillance system in Burkina Faso and Mali before the vaccine was introduced. Recommendations from these evaluations helped countries in strengthening their surveillance systems so that the impact of this new vaccine can be accurately assessed.

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U.S. DEPARTMENT OF HEALTH AND HUMAN SERVICES